Former East St. Louis Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Theft of Government Property

Larry D. Greenlee, 40, of Belleville, Illinois, plead guilty in federal court in East St. Louis to one count of theft or conversion of government property, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.

Greenlee was indicted in February 2012. Facts surrounding the charge, as revealed in court, were that Greenlee, while a police officer for the city of East St. Louis, failed an integrity test wherein federal agents placed a Rolex watch encircled with diamonds in a vehicle that appeared to be abandoned or stolen. Audio and video surveillance was in place around the vehicle. On September 17, 2010, Greenlee responded to a call of a suspicious vehicle and then inventoried the contents of the vehicle prior to having the vehicle towed. During that process, Greenlee stole the Rolex watch from the vehicle. Sentencing is scheduled for September 21, 2012.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Norman Smith.