Prosecutors: Woodridge Ex-Cop Charged with Theft Lived Beyond his Means

A former was "living beyond his means," Assistant State's Attorney Helen Kapas said Thursday, and used charity donations to fund his lifestyle.

Scott A. Webb, 39, of Romeoville, had a Harley Davidson motorcycle, a Ford Ranger truck and a SAAB convertible, she said. He had two homes and enjoyed drinking and dining women. 

Webb was using charity donations as a personal "slush fund," she said. 

Webb is a 10-year veteran of the . He is charged with taking $30,000 from the 2009 and 2010 Crawlin' for the Fallen fundraisers, a bar crawl he helped organize to benefit C.O.P.S. (Concerns of Police Survivors). The organization benefits family members of police officers killed in the line of duty. 

Jim Ryan, Webb's attorney, countered Kapas' claims, saying Webb's home in Romeoville is currently in foreclosure. 

The information provided by Kapas was part of her argument that Webb's bail be increased to $2 million to prevent him from fleeing the jurisdiction, again. 

Kapas requested in October the bail for Webb be increased from $250,000 to $2 million. Webb posed a "substantial risk" for violating bail requirements and fleeing the jurisdiction, she said. 

Judge Kathryn E. Creswell increased Webb's bail to $750,000 at a hearing Thursday. Woodridge Police Chief Steve Herron, Deputy Chief Ken Boehm, Deputy Chief Gina Grady and Management Analyst Kate Andris were all present.

Jim Ryan, Webb's attorney, said Webb did not have the funds to post the 10 percent of his previous bail, so raising it to $750,000 "doesn't really matter," Ryan said. 

He said the state's request seemed like a "no-bond bail," which did not seem apprioriate considering the case. 

Ryan said his client understand the seriousness of not turning himself in but that his life prior to May was not consistent with that decision. 

"He's 39 and will be 40 in two days," Ryan said. "He didn't envision spending his 40th birthday this way." 

Ryan asked Judge Creswell to consider Webb had no prior criminal background and there were other ways, like a GPS monitoring system, to keep tabs on Webb's whereabouts. 

Creswell said she based her decision on the evidence of flight in May. If Webb can post bail, he must wear a GPS device at all times and he must show up for every court day. If he does not, he will be sought on a no-bond warrant and could be tried and sentenced without being present to defend himself. 

Creswell said if convicted, Webb could face 3 to 7 years in prison, a $25,000 fine or up to four years of probation. 

Kapas said she had 4,000 pages of discovery and was ready to proceed. 

"We'll help counsel put it in his car," she said. 

Webb was indicted May 23  on two counts of theft and was sought on a $250,000 bail arrest warrant.

Kapas said that in 2009 and 2010, Illinois C.O.P.S. did not receive donations following the two bar crawls, called "Crawlin' for the Fallen." 

Grand jury records indicated two large deposits were made to Webb's personal bank account following the 2009 and 2010 events. These deposits were separate from payroll deposits from the, she said.

In 2009, the amount deposited was $11,283. In 2010, the amount was $5,707. In total, more than $30,000 was taken, Kapas said. 

Webb's attorney told prosecutors Webb would turn himself in on May 24 at 3 p.m. He never did. 

Kapas said he instead went to say goodbye to his sister, Dawn Ferralez. He gave her $2,000, asked her to sell his possessions and write down her phone number and address. Ferralez insists her brother told her he would turn himself in and gave her the money to buy a larger care to care for her children and grandchildren.

At 1 p.m. May 24, Webb withdrew $16,500 from his bank account, Kapas said. 

Five months later, living under the alias "Jeff Scott Waits" in an apartment with a loaded handgun and almost $6,000 in cash. His car was concealed in a shed with D.C. plates covering the Illinois registered ones.

Webb's sister since his disappearance in May. She said there must be an explanation for the large deposits to his account and she doubts the bar crawls could have generated $30,000 in profit.