Sheriff's Deputy Accused Of Lying To Police, 911 After Losing His Gun

SKOKIE, IL — A sergeant who works at the Cook County Jail faces a felony charge after he admitted to lying to police about getting mugged, authorities said.

Raad Korkes left his gun in his unlocked car on New Year's Eve, according to police and prosecutors. Once he realized it was gone, he allegedly called 911 and reported that he had been the victim of an armed robbery — rather than a car burglary.

Korkes, 33, of Park Ridge, has been charged with two counts of disorderly conduct, de-deputized and placed on desk duty over the incident, according to a sheriff's office spokesperson.

The six-year sheriff's office veteran posted the $1,000 cash portion of his bail to secure his pretrial release and was permitted to keep his firearm over the objection of the prosecution.

Korkes called 911 around 7:45 p.m. on Dec. 31 and told the operator that two people had disarmed him, at first claiming he could not get a good look at the muggers but described one as black and said the other was too far away, according to Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Jennifer Ravin.

Later, Korkes embellished the facts in an initial interview with Park Ridge police, Ravin said at his initial court appearance earlier this month. In his second version, he provided detailed clothing descriptions, heights and ages of his imagined assailants.

Ravin said the correctional sergeant later provided detectives will an even more elaborate falsified account. He claimed both muggers wore ski masks but he could determine their ethnicity by the skin around their eyes, the prosecutor said.

Korkes also allegedly lied to investigators about one of the muggers pointing a gun at his head.

Investigators reviewed surveillance footage from the area around Korkes' house, which contradicted his version of events, Ravin said.

Instead of showing an armed robbery, the footage shows someone in a light-colored hoodie get out of a running car in front of Korkes' Good Avenue home, the prosecutor said.

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The person on the video checks windows and the area between Korkes' and his neighbor's house, pulls on doorknobs and approaches a car behind Korkes' house before getting back into the idling car and driving away, Ravin said.

About 40 minutes later, Korkes called 911 and told dispatchers that he had been robbed about 15 minutes earlier, according to the prosecutor.

When confronted by detectives with the inconsistencies in his story and the surveillance video showing what appears to be the theft of his gun from his unlocked car, Ravin said Korkes admitted lying to police.

"I f----- up. I should have told the truth to the first officer that came to my house but I was worried for my job," Korkes allegedly told investigators.

Defense attorney Peter Garbis said Korkes began cooperating with police starting on Jan. 1 and turned himself in voluntarily at the Park Ridge Police Department.

Korkes is due back in court in Skokie to be indicted on Feb. 7.

"He admits that he was afraid because he had left his weapon unsecured in the car and it was unlocked that he'd lose his job," Ravin said.

"In this case, the cover-up is worse than the original incident."