Centreville Assistant Police Chief Guilty

The former assistant chief of police for Centreville, Illinois, pled guilty in U.S. District Court on April 25, 2013, to making false statements to federal law enforcement officers, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Corey Allen, 31, admitted that he lied to federal law enforcement officers while they investigated whether he sold a gun to a convicted felon.
Allen was indicted by the federal grand jury on December 11, 2012, following an inquiry into whether he sold a gun to a registered sex offender. On November 30, 2012, Allen was interviewed by federal agents who asked him whether he supplied Individual #1 with a firearm. Allen stated that he did not supply the gun to Individual #1, claiming that he had no idea where Individual #1 had gotten the gun. Allen further stated that he had never seen the gun before federal agents recovered it on October 11, 2012.
Allen admitted in court documents that he had previously possessed the firearm and in fact had sold the gun to Individual #1 for $100 on May 3, 2012, knowing that Individual #1 was a felon and a registered sex offender. Allen stated that he came into possession of the firearm while working as a police officer, but rather than documenting the recovery of the weapon he simply kept it and later sold it.
The crime of making a false statement to a federal law enforcement officer is punishable by up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and not more than three years’ supervised release upon release from prison. However, the United States Sentencing Guidelines must be applied to the case and considered by the court during sentencing. Court documents explained that, under the Sentencing Guidelines, Allen will be sentenced for the more serious offense of selling a firearm to a felon in addition to his conduct of making false statements. Sentencing has been scheduled for August 30, 2013.
US Attorney Stephen Wigginton said, “Instead of upholding the oath he took to protect his community, this officer personally armed a sex offender with a stolen gun, then lied to federal agents about what he had done. He threw away his career, tarnished the badge, and endangered his community for a few dollars.”
The investigation was conducted through the Metro East Public Corruption Task Force by agents from the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft.