'G.I. Joe' Suicide: Joe Gliniewicz's Wife, Son Under Investigation In Connection To Embezzlement

The wife and son of the Fox Lake, Illinois, police officer who officials say staged his own death in September are being investigated in connection to the probe into the officer's alleged theft of funds from the police department, WFLD-TV in Chicago reported late Wednesday. Lt. Joe Gliniewicz, whose death was ruled a suicide Wednesday, stole money from a program intended to mentor children who wanted to one day go into law enforcement.

Police are looking into whether Gliniewicz’s wife, Mel, and son, D.J., took part in the embezzlement. Gliniewicz regularly texted Mel and D.J. about the criminal investigation and reveal details about his operation, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Manuscripts of text-message conversations between Gliniewicz and two unidentified people were given out by investigators Wednesday, but sources close to the investigation have said those two were Mel and D.J., according to the Sun-Times.

Gliniewicz died Sept. 1 in what was staged to look like a murder. Police staged a weekslong manhunt for three men thought to be responsible, as Gliniewicz reported via radio just before his death that he was pursuing three suspicious men.

Gliniewicz, known as G.I. Joe in the community, had experience mocking crime scenes for training purposes, CNN reported. The Gliniewicz family released a statement through their attorney asking for the public to respect their privacy.

“The family has cooperated with the Task Force’s investigation and will not comment at this time,” the family said in a statement, according to local station WFLD-TV.

Gliniewicz began to face pressure when the Fox Lake village administrator said she would audit all of Fox Lake’s assets, making Gliniewicz afraid his embezzlement, which took place over the course of seven years, would come to light, the Sun-Times reported. Some of the text messages released by investigators implied that Gliniewicz’s son hoped village administrator Anne Marrin would get a DUI charge.