Dec. 29--A former far northwest suburban police officer was sentenced to four years in prison Monday for being in possession of stolen firearms and for two drug-related misconduct crimes.
Ryszard Kopacz, 32, of Wonder Lake, had been found guilty in August of removing guns from the Hebron police station without permission while working as an officer there. On Monday, he pleaded guilty in McHenry County court to the misconduct crimes, which happened when he worked for the Hebron and Richmond police departments.
Prosecutors said Kopacz, while working for Richmond, attempted to solicit painkillers from residents of an assisted-living facility, telling them he had a toothache. Kopacz also delivered marijuana on several occasions in 2014, during the time he worked for Hebron, prosecutors said.
Kopacz had been accused of illegally removing three weapons while working as a police sergeant in Hebron, where he oversaw the department's evidence storage room.
Authorities said the weapons were found in Kopacz's home -- then in Wauconda -- during an investigation that was launched after he was fired from another police department in nearby Richmond in July 2014. Kopacz began working there a few weeks after he was laid off from Hebron, but he was fired within his first week on the job after authorities said he attempted to solicit the drugs from residents while in uniform and then failed to show up for a shift.
Kopacz, who apologized at the sentencing hearing, will be on mandatory supervised release for two years after he serves his prison term, officials said. He was ordered to surrender on Jan. 4.
Amanda Marrazzo is a freelance reporter.
