Villa Park police worker pleads guilty to official misconduct
A Villa Park Police Department employee pleaded guilty to one count of official misconduct Tuesday in a case where he was accused of stealing prescription painkillers from one of the department's evidence vaults.
John M. Simons, 49, of Lombard agreed to a sentence of 90 days in jail on work release, starting Jan. 6. He also will serve 24 months of Treatment Alternatives for Safe Communities probation.
If he completes the probation successfully, he can apply to have his conviction vacated.
Simons faced 39 counts of official misconduct, theft and unlawful possession of a controlled substance. The count he pleaded guilty to involved possession of two hydrocodone pills on Oct. 23, 2018.
DuPage County Assistant State's Attorney Kenneth Tatarelis told Judge Liam Brennan that part of Simons' job as an investigative aide was to dispose of evidence from closed cases, and to collect and dispose of unused medications the public turned in at a drop box at the police station.
On Oct. 10, 2018, an officer handled three pills as evidence in a case; one was sent out for testing, and the other two were accidentally designated to be destroyed. When the mistake was discovered, Simons told an officer the pills had been crushed.
The pills were found later that month in a drawer in Simons' desk.
Tatarelis also said that when a deputy chief checked an evidence vault on Oct. 26, he found a bag with a hole cut in it that tested positive for drugs.
The department then set up a sting, using a deputy chief from the Northbrook Police Department.
That officer made two deposits of painkillers in the drop box. The first time, when investigators checked the evidence vault after Simons collected the materials, the pill container was empty. The second time, Simons was seen retrieving the pills, opening the container and putting something in his pocket.
Hydrocodone and clonazepam pills also were found in evidence bags in Simons' locker, when his son, a part-time officer, opened the locker after Simons had been placed on administrative leave.
Simons told police he had been in chronic pain since he suffered a broken neck in 1992. Part of his probation will include undergoing treatment for substance abuse.
Simons was charged Nov. 5, 2018. He quit his job the next day.