Cash Frozen in Gliniewicz Memorial Fund: Bank Officials

The funds in a memorial account set up with BMO Harris Bank in days following the death of Fox Lake Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz have been frozen, bank officials told the Daily Herald.

The memorial fund was meant to collect funds for Gliniewicz’s family. Patrick O’Herlihy, a spokesman with BMO Harris Bank, could not say how much money was in the account or how much had already been doled out but did say the funds would be held pending the result of a police investigation, according to the article.

The question of what should be done with the funds has come up following recent news that Gliniewicz staged his murder after stealing from the village-operated Explorers program, which he ran, for years -- and some who have donated funds have requested their money back.

McHenry Outdoor Theater owner Scott Dehn was among those who organized a charity event with funds being funneled directly into the main memorial fund at BMO Harris. But, the thought of asking that donations raised by his theater in September be returned, had not crossed his mind, according to the Northwest Herald.

The outdoor theater held a special showing of the movie Superman, which raised $5,000.

“Despite what came out, I hope we can remember how we came together as a community, and we don’t become hardened or jaded,” Dehn told the Northwest Herald. “We all did the right things for the right reasons. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.”

Not all organizations feel the same way.

Joe Ahern, CEO of the 100 Club of Chicago, recently told the Chicago Tribune he plans to ask the Gliniewicz family to return the $15,000 his organization donated to them in the days following Gliniewicz’s death. It will be the first time in 50 years the organization has asked for its money back.

The group donates funds to families following “line-of-duty” deaths.

“In this case it was not a line-of-duty death. That is clear,” Ahren told the Chicago Tribune. “We will ask the family for the money back.”

Motorola Solutions Inc. donated $50,000 to the Explorer post that Gliniewicz ran. That money, company spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch said last week, would be used to help replace funds that were stolen, according to the Daily Herald.

The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund removed Gliniewicz’s name and photo from its website last week following news surfaced of the embezzlement allegations and suicide, according to U.S. News and World Report. The organization tracks officers killed in the line of duty.

Gliniewicz was found shot dead in Fox Lake in Sept. 1 after radioing dispatch to say he was investigating three suspicious men. The death sparked a massive manhunt for the alleged suspects and lead to G.I. Joe being hailed as a hero. Thousands lined streets of Lake County during his funeral procession.

In recent weeks. police announced Gliniewicz had in fact committed suicide after he stolen thousands of dollars from the Explorers for seven years.

Gliniewicz, whose salary in 2015 was $96,345.60, spent the stolen money on such things as travel expenses, mortgage payments, a gym membership, adult websites and loans to his friends. The veteran cop also tried to “put a hit” on the Fox Lake Village Manager Anne Marrin over fears she was going to uncover his embezzlement scheme.

Police have also since confirmed Gliniewicz’s wife, Melodie, and son, D.J., are being investigated, according to Fox 32 News.