More than a decade before his death now ruled a suicide, then sergeant Charles Joseph Gliniewicz was the target of a federal sexual harassment complaint filed by a woman who worked under his supervision in the Fox Lake Police explorer unit.
The woman, who we have chosen not to name, alleged that she was “pressured to perform oral sex” by Gliniewicz and that “sexual favors were strongly encouraged and/or required to protect her job.”
According to the complaint, Gliniewicz was suspended from the department for 30 days after admitting to the relationship.
The complaint against him, however, was dismissed in 2005 after the accuser and her attorney failed to make court dates and turn over evidence.
But her allegations take on new relevance, after the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force called Gliniewicz’s death a “carefully staged suicide” committed to hide a complicated embezzlement scheme from the explorer’s troop.
The woman told NBC Chicago that several other women may have found themselves in similar situations with Lt. Gliniewicz. She has since moved out of state.
Officials announced Wednesday that a months-long investigation into Gliniewicz's fatal shooting had determined the officer's death, which rocked the small community about 60 miles north of Chicago and prompted a massive manhunt, was a "carefully staged suicide" and "the end result of extensive criminal acts."
Lake County Major Crimes Task Force Commander George Filenko revealed that Gliniewicz had been stealing and laundering money from the Fox Lake Police Explorer Post for seven years, using thousands of dollars for personal purchases, mortgages, travel expenses, gym memberships, adult websites and to facilitate person loans. He also said Gliniewicz forged signatures in official documents.
In total, officials said 6,500 pages of text messages from Gliniewicz's personal and work phones were reviewed during the investigation.
The text messages reveal that Fox Lake Village Administrator Anne Marrin loomed large in Gliniewicz’s fears.
"She hates me," he texted someone identified only as "Individual 2," who suggested, "Hopefully she decides to get a couple of drinks in her and she gets a DUI."
"Trust me," Gliniewicz replied. "I’ve thought it through. Many scenarios, from planting things, to the Volo bog."
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Marrin noted that her limited interactions with Gliniewicz, while brief, were always "pleasant."
"We never fought, there were never harsh words," she said.
She said she last received an email from Gliniewicz the morning before his suicide.
"The news that Gliniewicz engaged in the same criminal activity that he swore to combat, while shocking, is not at all surprising," Marrin said. "But his conduct should not reflect on the men and women who wear the same uniform and serve their communities daily, faithfully and with integrity."
Marrin said two Fox Lake officers have volunteered to take over the Police Explorer's program and the program will continue, along with her audit.
"It’s been very scary, it’s been surreal, but I have been tasked to do a job and I have to see this through and that is my plan," she said.
Gliniewicz's wife and son are also under investigation in the case, a source close to the investigation told NBC5 News. No charges had been filed as of Thursday morning.
