Texts Show How Desperate Crooked Cop Had Become

Illinois police on Wednesday confirmed police officer Charles "Joe" Gliniewicz orchestrated a "carefully staged suicide" after stealing money from the Fox Lake Police Department's Explorer program over seven years. Lake County Major Crimes Task Force commander George Filenko says the probe points to "criminal activity on the part of at least two other individuals," and a source tells NBC Chicago that Gliniewicz's wife, Mel, and son, DJ, are under investigation. Their names surface again in a Sun-Times report, which identifies them, via a source, as the "Individual 1" and "Individual 2," respectively, who exchanged revealing texts with Gliniewicz. New Village Administrator Anne Marrin had been pressing Gliniewicz about the Explorer program up until the day before his death, and texts allegedly make reference to her.

"This situation right here would give her the means to crucify me if it were discovered," Gliniewicz wrote. When Individual 2 expressed hope that Marrin "decides to get a couple of drinks in her and she gets a DUI," Gliniewicz replied, "Trust me, I've thought it through. Many scenarios, from planting things, to the Volo bog"—the latter being local parkland, per the Sun-Times. Meanwhile, the 100 Club of Chicago, which offers money to the families of officers killed in the line of duty, has for the first time in its history asked for its $15,000 back. "In this case it was not a line-of-duty death. That is clear," the charity's CEO says, per the Chicago Tribune. However, four girls who raised at least $5,000 for Gliniewicz's children say the money will still go to the intended recipients. "None of this is the children's fault," a parent says. (More suicide stories.)