Former Elgin deputy chief on unpaid leave from new chief post
A former Elgin Deputy Police Chief accused of identity theft and official misconduct made his first appearance in Kane County court Wednesday.
Robert Beeter, 51, of Elgin, is now on unpaid administrative leave from his post as police chief in Stockon, Ill., his attorney said.
Beeter is accused of repeatedly hacking into the email of his mistress’s husband from September 2010 through April 2011 and improperly using a police database four times in June 2010 for personal use.
Beeter’s case was moved twice because the judges knew him from when he worked as a member of Elgin police.
“He’s got a great law enforcement career, and he’s extremely well liked. That’s why the first judge recused himself,” said Beeter’s defense attorney Brian Telander.
Beeter appreared for just a couple minutes before Judge Karen Simpson and was advised of his rights and consequences if his missed a court date. He did not enter a plea.
Telander said he could not comment on the specifics of the case because he had just received some 1,300 pages of documents.
Beeter, who served 21 years with the Elgin police force before taking a voluntary buyout early last year, was arrested May 22 at the Stockton Police Department after he was indicted on 16 counts of identity theft and four counts of official misconduct.
Beeter, who declined to comment, is accused of hacking into the email of Greg Welter, a former Elgin police lieutenant, and his business partner Debra Seitz.
Beeter was suspended July 2010 for having an affair with Welter’s wife, Tamara, who was and still is a sergeant with Elgin police.
Greg Welter eventually resigned from Elgin police; both Tamara Welter and Beeter were suspended without pay for 30 days.
According to court records, Beeter filed for divorce from his wife in April 2010 and it was finalized in early September 2010. He cited “irreconcilable differences” but she argued “extreme and repeated mental cruelty,” records show. In late September, she obtained a two-week emergency order of protection against Beeter for “harassment,” but he went to court the next week and a judge vacated it.
Greg Welter and Seitz both attended Wednesday’s hearing; Greg Welter declined to comment afterward.
After Beeter was indicted, he was placed on paid leave from the Stockton Department; Telander said his client also served at police departments in Wheaton and Glendale Heights before Elgin.
Beeter is next due in court on Aug. 8. If convicted, he faces anywhere between probation and five years in prison.