Dolton Deputy Chief Charged With Bankruptcy Fraud: Authorities

DOLTON, IL — A Dolton deputy police chief was indicted Monday on federal bankruptcy fraud charges, according to authorities, who said he is accused of hiding assets from creditors in connection with a legal settlement in which he owed the plaintiff over $40,000.

Lewis A. Lacey, 61, of Matteson, is charged with nine counts, each punishable by up to five years in prison, including bankruptcy fraud, lying in a bankruptcy case and perjury, authorities said.

Lacey has filed for bankruptcy repeatedly since the 1980s, including in 2019 and 2020, when his petitions stayed enforcement of a 2017 state lawsuit settlement, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Lacey filed the 2019 bankruptcy petition after the plaintiff moved to enforce the settlement, arguing Lacey still owed $43,000 of the $55,000 agreement, authorities said.

Lacey is accused of underreporting his income, hiding bank accounts, and pretending that he was separated from his spouse and that she didn’t live with him or contribute to his income and mortgage, according to the department.

Lacey was placed on administrative leave last week by Dolton’s village board, a move embattled Mayor Tiffany Henyard characterized as political retaliation, according to WLS, which noted Village Administrator Keith Freeman was also recently indicted for bankruptcy fraud.

The justice department stated that Lacey’s indictment was part of an ongoing federal investigation.

The village board is probing Dolton’s finances, with that investigation led by former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who during a presentation last week highlighted that Lacey received more than $215,000 in overtime between 2022 and 2024, WLS reported.

"The government and some people in Dolton have it out for the mayor," Lacey’s lawyer, Gal Pissetzky, told WLS. "And so they decided to go and try to get to the mayor through other people that served under her."