Pretrial Release Granted For Man Who Sexually Assaulted DuPage Co. Boy

JOLIET, IL —Pretrial release was granted for a former Westmont man convicted of sexually assaulting a boy, 11, in DuPage County in 1989 who was also recently accused of taking photos of young boys at a pool in Joliet. Farrell Theis, of Romeoville, was granted pretrial release by Judge Derek Ewanik, according to Patch Editor John Ferak.

Police say Theis had been employed by a third-party company and was responsible for filling vending machines at Inwood Athletic Center. In late January, an employee at the athletic center reported that they saw a man, whom police identified as Theis, near the pool, where he appeared to be taking photos of boys between the ages of 14 and 18.

Theis had previously been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the 1989 sex assault, but had only been required to register as a sex offender for 10 years, per the law in Illinois at that time, prosecutors said.

Per granting pretrial release to Theis, Ewanic said, "defendant has no law enforcement contact since 1989 and no other contact since this incident in January 2025."

Theis was ordered by Ewanic not to have contact with minors or possess photography equipment around minors.

Theis is set to appear in court April 22.

Patch Editor John Ferak contributed reporting.