Former Thebes, Ill., police officer arrested on misconduct charge

THEBES, Ill. -- A former city police officer was arrested by the Illinois State Police Friday on suspicion of inappropriate conduct while on duty, according to a news release sent by the state police Tuesday.

Terry Crowe, 39, of Mounds, Ill., was arrested on an Alexander County warrant for two counts of official misconduct.

According to court documents filed in the case, Crowe, while on duty, took a person into custody and released that person in exchange for sexual favors. An Alexander County clerk said the affidavit doesn't give the age or sex of the alleged victim, but Thebes Mayor John Kennedy, also acting police chief, said the victim was a woman.

Crowe, he added, was being investigated for approximately one year before his arrest. Kennedy said he suspended him while the investigation was pending, but Crowe resigned a week after his suspension. His resignation letter stated that he was resigning, but gave no reason.

Kennedy hired a replacement for Crowe shortly after. The Thebes Police Department consists of one officer.

The allegations caught Kennedy by surprise, but he said he did notice a change in Crowe the last month of his employment with the force.

"It seemed like he kind of really got withdrawn," Kennedy said. "He made a bad choice and I don't know what his thinking was when he did what he did."

Crowe was being held at the Hardin County Sheriff's Department and was released on a $100,000 bond.

Pertinent address:

Thebes, Ill.