Darien Sex Offender Won't Be Charged: Cops

DARIEN, IL – A DuPage County prosecutor declined last fall to charge a sex offender who may not have registered where he lived.

On Oct. 10, Stanley J. Kopka, 51, was arrested on a charge of domestic battery at a house in the 1500 block of Stewart Drive in Darien. Kopka, who was accused of attacking a woman, was taken to the county jail.

Ten days later, Kopka's name was listed in Darien's police blotter. Patch searched Kopka's name online and found he was listed as a sex offender living in Harvard, a McHenry County town. But Darien police said Kopka lived at the Stewart address.

Under state law, sex offenders must register where they live.

According to the state's sex offender registry, Kopka was convicted of aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a 15-year-old in DeKalb County. He was 28 at the time.

Patch inquired about Kopka's residency with Deputy Police Chief Jason Norton. He then alerted detectives about Kopka's sex offender status.

Through a public records request, Patch obtained the report on the police investigation.

The detectives said they found a report from the DuPage County Sheriff's Office on Sept. 19 that said Kopka changed his address from the 600 block of West 55th Street in Hinsdale to the Stewart address.

On Oct. 13, the sheriff's office filed a report that Kopka would be traveling between the Stewart address and his listed address in Harvard to tend to his mother.

The victim's daughter told detectives that Kopka had moved into the house around the beginning of October, according to the Darien police report. Kopka moved out after he was arrested and had not returned, the daughter told police.

The victim said Kopka received mail at the house and still had personal items there, including furniture, toiletries and clothes, the report said. She emailed photos of three pieces of mail showing Kopka's name and the Stewart address.

A detective dialed Kopka's number, but his phone was disconnected.

In his report, the detective said he sent all relevant documents to DuPage County prosecutor Cathy Nusgart for approval of felony charges.

Nusgart decided against filing charges in early November, police said.