Ex-Woodridge cop accused of using charity as 'personal slush fund'
Former Woodridge police officer Scott Webb used a charity for fallen officers as “his own personal slush fund” to finance a lifestyle that included women, motorcycles and heavy drinking, a prosecutor charged in court Thursday.
The veteran police official was ordered held on $750,000 bail at his second DuPage County court appearance since his apprehension last month in Branson, Mo.
Assistant State's Attorney Helen Kapas said Webb's Romeoville home was in foreclosure and he was living “way beyond his means” when he pilfered more than $30,000 in donations raised for the Illinois Concerns of Police Survivors.
Meanwhile, she said, the former officer's lifestyle consisted of heavy drinking, carousing with women and riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
“This lifestyle got the best of him,” Kapas said, calling it a “very sad day for law enforcement.”
Local, state and federal authorities spent “countless hours and public funds” on a five-month search after Webb blew off on an agreement to surrender when he was charged with felony theft in May, Kapas said. When officers found him living under an alias in Missouri in October, she said, they also found a pipe containing marijuana, bundles of cash and a handgun loaded with hollow-point bullets.
To avoid detection, Kapas said, Webb put commemorative Washington D.C. license plates on his truck and hid it in a shed. He also instructed a sister to avoid calling his cellphone because he knew authorities could track him that way, she said.
“This defendant has caused a lot of shame to the Woodridge Police Department. He poses a huge (flight) risk,” Kapas said.
Defense attorney Jim Ryan said Webb joined the Woodridge force about 10 years ago and previously worked as a police officer in south suburban Hometown for about four years.
He said Webb, who turns 40 this week, has no prior criminal record and his family is not likely to be able to post bond.
“He certainly didn't envision himself in this situation on his 40th birthday,” Ryan said. “We understand it's serious.”
Webb's original arrest warrant set bail at $250,000, but he was ordered held without bail while prosecutors pursued an increase following his arrest.
On Thursday, Judge Kathryn Creswell denied prosecutors' request for a $2 million bail but increased the original amount to $750,000. She told Webb he would be tracked by GPS should he post the necessary $75,000 bond to get out of jail.
“That's fine,” Webb said.
The charity group Webb is accused of stealing from offers services to family members of police officers who have died on the job. Prosecutors say he pocketed the donations while helping organize two pub crawl fundraisers on behalf of his police union in 2009 and 2010.
Woodridge Police Chief Steve Herron, who was in court Thursday, said Webb resigned in March rather than go before a municipal police commission after an internal investigation. He said Webb had maintained he was innocent.
“Our goal has always been to take the case to court, show the facts, and let (a judge or jury) make a decision,” he said. “We felt our case — again, an internal case — was a strong case.”
Webb could be sentenced to anywhere from probation to three to seven years in prison if convicted. Prosecutors said they were turning over some 4,000 pages of discovery to the defense in the case and were prepared for trial.
Webb returns to court Dec. 19.