A former Chicago police officer, Jeffrey Kriv, aged 56, has admitted to charges of theft after he was caught repeatedly filing false auto theft reports. These actions were reportedly intended to evade paying traffic fines. Court records reveal that Kriv has accepted a plea deal and will be placed on probation.
During a court session with Judge Jennifer Coleman last week, Kriv pleaded guilty to one count of theft. In return, the prosecution agreed to drop eight other serious felony charges, which included several counts of perjury. As part of the plea agreement, Kriv has been mandated to pay restitution amounting to $4,500.
Since 2009, Kriv had purportedly filed false reports claiming that his girlfriend had stolen his car on 44 different occasions, effectively helping him avoid parking and automated traffic fines. Prosecutors indicated that he used these claims to assert during administrative hearings that his girlfriend had taken the vehicle whenever he was issued a citation. Investigators alleged that he submitted nearly identical fraudulent police reports to substantiate these claims, leading to the dismissal of numerous tickets.
It was noted that in January 2023, prosecutors identified that Kriv managed to sidestep paying at least $3,665 in fines through his false claims, including instances where he avoided $330 in fines on four occasions. In a separate incident, Kriv attempted to challenge a fine against his BMW by presenting what he dubbed a “duplicate” ticket, which was later found to be an altered document he had issued to another driver on a different date.
According to a review of municipal records conducted by CWBChicago, Kriv had successfully dismissed 70 tickets since 2009, while only having paid penalties on 10 occasions. These dismissed tickets comprised a range of violations, including red-light and speed camera infractions, as well as parking violations—one of which was for parking in a zone reserved for police vehicles.
Kriv became a part of the Chicago Police Department (CPD) in 1996, serving most recently in the Near West District (12th District). In 2021, his records showed he earned upwards of $145,000 in base salary and overtime, alongside being recognized as one of the state’s leading DUI enforcers, racking up 114 arrests that year. Following the initiation of the charges, his attorney Tim Grace referenced Kriv’s record of 175 commendations and positive recognitions, terming the allegations against him as “interesting.”
After a complaint was lodged with the Office of Inspector General that triggered the investigation into his ticket practices, Kriv was stripped of his police powers in January 2023 and subsequently retired shortly thereafter.
City surveillance footage has revealed several of the violations that Kriv managed to contest successfully. For instance, footage showed his car executing a left-hand turn on red in the bustling Loop area, which was among his last successful dismissals for a speed camera violation recorded in June 2023, where his car was clocked at 54 mph in a park zone.
Additionally, records illustrate that Kriv won another dismissal for a speed camera ticket at the same location back in 2018, where his vehicle was noted traveling at 50 mph at that time.
CWBChicago was established in 2013 by a group of five residents from Wrigleyville and Boystown who were frustrated with the inaccuracies prevalent in local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings.
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