Fox Lake disbands youth program after Gliniewicz death

FOX LAKE, Ill. (AP) - Officials say the youth program that a Fox Lake police officer is accused of stealing money from before he killed himself has been temporarily disbanded because of mismanagement.

Fox Lake Law Enforcement Explorer Post 300 was created and advised by late Fox Lake police Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz, who authorities say staged his suicide to look like a homicide because he feared discovery of the embezzlement. The Explorer post was shut down indefinitely because it didn't comply with rules established by the Boy Scouts of America, the (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald (http://bit.ly/1Og7F39 ) reports.

Fox Lake police spokesman Detective Chris Covelli said rules violations included allowing unregistered youths to volunteer in the program, letting unregistered adults do so without a proper background check, and paying some youth members for working volunteer parking duties.

"The Fox Lake Police Department is in existence to supply police assistance and support to the community," Covelli said. "The Fox Lake police officers are working on healing after this trying time and have new responsibilities. That is their focus."

In court documents released last month, prosecutors said bank records show Gliniewicz took thousands of dollars from the Explorer program, spending the funds on items such as coffee, restaurant meals and trips to the movies.

Mayor Donny Schmit said he volunteered to be an adviser at the Fox Lake Explorer post to help it continue to run. But he said the program needs police officers.

"It is still a priority to keep an Explorer post, but we need to put the program on hiatus until all the investigations are complete," Schmit said. "We need to restructure the program to meet with the Boy Scouts charter."

Covelli said the police department hopes to reopen the Explorer post at an undetermined later time with help from the Boy Scouts of America, which is the governing body of youth police Explorer posts.

The village hasn't yet received $50,000 pledged to the Explorer program by Motorola, Covelli said. If it does get the money, Covelli said the funds would be returned because the program's financial accounts are frozen as part of the ongoing criminal investigation into Gliniewicz.

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Information from: Daily Herald, http://www.dailyherald.com