Timothy Veit, Making False Statements, Illinois 2023
Former Des Plaines Police Commander Charged with Making False Statements
CHICAGO — Timothy Veit, a former commander of the Des Plaines Police Department's support services division, was charged with making false statements in reports that concealed the suburban department’s failure to meet the requirements of a federally-funded impaired-driving enforcement campaign between 2009 and 2012.
The charges allege that Veit, 55, of Mt. Prospect, inflated by 122 the number of arrests for driving under the influence and provided false information regarding blood-alcohol content levels for the fictitious arrests. As a result, the charges allege that Des Plaines fraudulently obtained $132,893 in federal reimbursement for overtime compensation.
Veit, who served as project director for the Des Plaines Police Department’s participation in the Sustained Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) enforcement campaigns, was responsible for certifying the department’s compliance with its terms and conditions, including the performance objective that grant recipients average at least one DUI arrest for every 10 hours of overtime worked by officers on impaired-driving enforcement.
The STEP grants required intensive enforcement of specific traffic laws, coupled with other measures, at specific times of the year, particularly on major holidays when alcohol-involved and unbuckled fatalities were highest. STEP grant participants paid the program costs from local funds and then, after each enforcement campaign, submitted claims for reimbursement that covered overtime pay for officers, mileage, and equipment.
According to the charges, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration funded grants to state and local law enforcement agencies to conduct highway safety programs, including the STEP. Locally, the grants were administered through the Illinois Department of Transportation.
The charges were announced by Gary S. Shapiro, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Michelle McVicker, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.
Veit was charged with one count of making false statements in a felony information. No date has been set yet for his arraignment in U.S. District Court.
Making false statements carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
Key Facts
- State: Illinois
- Category: Public Corruption
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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