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Inside the Pelo investigation: From colleague to prime suspect
By Edith Brady-Lunny
eblunny@pantagraph.com
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PART ONE OF TWO BLOOMINGTON -- The co-workers of former police Sgt. Jeff Pelo knew within hours of encountering him outside a woman’s home on June 10, 2006, that he could be guilty of more than attempted residential burglary. | VIDEO: The Pelo Investigation: Part One | Special section

"It was my feeling that we had our rape suspect the night he (Pelo) was stopped between the houses,” said Bloomington police Detective Matthew Dick, one of the lead investigators in the case.

Pelo was convicted in June of raping four women between December 2002 and January 2005 and stalking another woman between 2005 and 2006. The 43-year-old former officer is serving 440 years in prison.

Police began to systematically unravel Pelo’s extensive web of criminal activity against women after he was stopped around midnight between two homes on Andy Court. His explanation that he was house shopping for his mother-in-law was summarily dismissed by fellow officers.

Jeff Pelo


“There’s just absolutely no reason he should be in that place at that time. For me, it wasn’t believable from the very, very first second. He used his position to get away with it from the very beginning,” said Larry Shepherd, the detective chosen to interview Pelo later on June 10, 2006.

Pelo’s demeanor during the questioning was as telling as the answers he gave to questions about the incident, said Shepherd.

“I’ve never in all the interviews I’ve done — and I’ve done a bunch of them — seen someone give off so many deceptive traits as he did. He held the line from beginning to end that ‘I didn’t do nothing.’ Well, I and everybody else who was watching said, ‘Baloney, I know better,’” said Shepherd.

Shepherd, Dick and Sgt. Clay Wheeler talked to The Pantagraph recently about how the case against Pelo was put together.

First 48 hours

With Pelo in custody because police thought he was attempting to break into the stalking victim’s home on Andy Court, investigators quickly assembled photo lineups to show to victims — before Pelo’s picture appeared in the news media. Victims were solid in their identification of Pelo, said Wheeler.

“When we showed them the lineups they didn’t pick him out as the person who had followed them, they picked him out as ‘I recognize him as the person who assaulted me,’” Dick said.

The women also listened to a series of eight voice recordings to see if they could identify their attacker. Pelo’s most recent victims, who were assaulted within weeks of one another in January 2005, selected Pelo’s voice from the lineup.

Within days, Pelo went from being a veteran police officer to a suspect in a stalking and attempted residential burglary case, and investigators had their sights set on more serious accusations.

Making the case

At the time Pelo was stopped, Wheeler and Dick had few leads in four unsolved sexual assault cases dating back to 2002.

An FBI profile provided in fall 2005 helped investigators understand that the rapist may have been watching victims for some time, waiting for the opportunity to attack. Information from victims led police to believe that a person with police or military training could be responsible.

Wheeler and Dick passed along a synopsis of their profile to all officers, including Pelo.

One of the most damaging pieces of evidence against Pelo was the series of license plate checks he made without justification on vehicles owned by young women.

Pelo was asked about one of those license plate searches discovered during the probe into the second sexual assault in 2003.

Pelo said a problem with computer log-ins may have caused the plate run to be incorrectly attributed to him. That explanation he gave to Wheeler was accepted at the time because he was not a target of the investigation.

But like many other things, that license plate check took on new significance after Pelo was arrested in June 2006.

“Knowing that we had that plate run, I was thinking we’ve got a lot of work to do and we’ve got to do it immediately,” Walker said of the early hours of the investigation.

Keeping the case

The detectives, who were spending more hours at the police station than at home, took no time to question whether it was proper for them to be investigating one of their own.

“From the day it happened there was no doubt that we would be the ones handling it. You couldn’t just hand something that big to another agency and expect them to pick up the ball and do what needed to be done immediately,” said Dick.

And Shepherd said he did not hesitate when asked to question Pelo.

“There’s no place I would rather have been than doing that interview. We take offense to those kinds of things that are happening under our noses and we want them taken care of,” the detective said.

Take a look
Bloomington police detectives Clay Wheeler, left, and Matthew Dick talk about the case they built against former police Sgt. Jeff Pelo, who was convicted of raping four women and stalking a fifth. Wheeler and Dick were the lead detectives on the case. (The Pantagraph/David Proeber)
Larry Shepherd, Clay Wheeler, left, and Matthew Dick of the Bloomington Police Department talk about their work in building a case against their former colleague, Jeff Pelo. (The Pantagraph/David Proeber)
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Reader comments on this story - 26 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

MISSterious wrote on Sep 3, 2008 4:35 PM:

" Milk was a bad choice: I realize the question was not directed at me, so I do apologize for butting in, but there is at least one screw up I'd like to point out - tied to this very case - that BPD needed to be redeemed for: While Pelo (one man) was out and about raping women all over town, the BPD actively denied that any of these rapes were related. They ran stories in the Pantagraph and sent out press releases to state that there was no reason to believe that rapes of several women were in any way related. Come to find out during trial that they had evidence, way back then, that suggested this was done by ONE man. So there's one screw-up...and a big one, as far as preserving the trust of the citizens. Do you want more? "

MISSterious wrote on Sep 3, 2008 4:30 PM:

" hometown girl: Well said!! Actually, I found the story quite interesting. It was nice to hear this from the point of view of the guys in blue. Great job BPD! "

In My Opinion wrote on Sep 3, 2008 2:18 PM:

" To Milk was a bad choice, how about the Sgt who is on unpaid leave for reporting the Lt. being under the influence at the stand off in Bloomington? Sad a Sgt who was arrested an jailed for rape charges and other crimes was paid for over a year while is case was built. All this Sgt did was report to the higher ups about a fellow officer being under the influence of alcohol after he was called in to supervise a standoff! He does not get the same treatment as being on PAID leave while his case is being looked at. "

Milk was a bad choice wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:46 PM:

" To: hometown girl. Please provide us with some examples of BPD's "screwups" since that is all you think they do. Thanks for the non-reply ahead of time. "

cocoa wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:40 PM:

" The BPD deserves the kudos on this - investigating your own is not enjoyable.

ONLY IN AMERICA - Absolutely not - Pelo didn't have any compassion for his victims, so wth should anyone show compassion for him? I frankly think rapists should have their parts cut off of them - in some countries you lose a hand if you are caught stealing. It's harder to steal with only one hand or no hands, isn't it? And therapy only works if the person wants to be helped. If Pelo wanted help he would have gotten it - he certainly would have known what resources for help are available in this area. If you think Americans are so dumb, please move to another country. Really. Please move. "

Country Boy wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:03 PM:

" keep rubbing it in, all the people who stood behind him can keep squirming! Its nice to know these cops figured it out right after he got caught house hunting and did not let his position in the department change their opinions. way to go BPD! "

LocalSportsGuy wrote on Sep 3, 2008 11:48 AM:

" If I read thr IDOC website right he will be up for parole in December of 2360. He can start counting down the days I guess huh? The sad thing is we are spending money keeping this guy alive this long. Sure the way he will be treated in prison he would prefer the death penalty. So maybe justice is served. "

candi wrote on Sep 3, 2008 11:44 AM:

" TO FYI:
I really think you need to understand a bit more about the psychology of the crime of rape. This man was all about being in control of these women, the sex part was part of the control. The testimony of the witnesses was that he could not even maintain an erection, so that should tell you right there that there is a complex situation at hand which would not be solved by your "prostitution" solution. "

hopeful wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:52 AM:

" To only in america..... let him "rest in peace"?? That man deserves NO peace. I would guess if you had a loved one that was attacked by him you would feel differently about that. "

Political Heretic wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:49 AM:

" I'm still waiting for the explaination of how the police, who are supposed to have an eagle eye for criminals, not only had a serial rapist in their midst for several years without them realizing it, but also actively denied it for almost a year.

The blue code of silence at work again? "

hometown girl wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:48 AM:

" Don't you all get it....they are trying to publicize the BPD on their "job well done" because it doesn't happen much!! Let them have their glory....they need it before they move on to their next screw up. "

ONLY IN AMERICA wrote on Sep 3, 2008 7:45 AM:

" WHO CARES.... Let him rest in peace in prison quit jamming it to him......

THE DUMBING OF AMERICA CONTINUES DAILY !!! "

shebs wrote on Sep 3, 2008 7:40 AM:

" Who's being prosecuted now. Justice has already been served....leave it alone! "

cheesehead wrote on Sep 3, 2008 7:06 AM:

" ZEVA and FYI:

Rape isn't about sex. It's not like the guy was in the mood and had no one to "get romantic" with. It's about power and control. I don't think a prostitute would have helped him. "

greenroom wrote on Sep 3, 2008 6:29 AM:

" Rape is not about sex. It is about having power and control over another person. Pelo didn't need a prostitute. He needed therapy. Kudos to all those involved who helped put him behind bars so he can't hurt anyone else. "

over65 wrote on Sep 3, 2008 5:50 AM:

" I have no patience with public officials even presenting the appearance of improper behavior. Law enforcement in McLean County and Bloomington must be commended for cleaning up the mess that was within their own ranks. "

Zeva wrote on Sep 3, 2008 3:45 AM:

" What I don't get is why 440 years? I think life with no possibility of parole would have sufficed enough. He won't even smell anymore after that many years. To me that is overkill. It's going to be hard enough spending the rest of his life behind the very bars he put people in let alone that many years. I hope he has a good hobby in mind because he is certainly going to need one. This was a man with a carreer and a good salary and he blew it all over sex. What was he thinking?? It's a shame it had to come to this. He could of found a lady of the evening and still kept his job. "

fyi wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:14 AM:

" Given that prostitution IS present (despite being illegal), why didn't he just go pay for what he wanted? It's not even that expensive; compared to his salary and freedom. There's no excuse for sadists like him, as they get off on the power and pain they inflict. There are many more that wouldn't prey on others sexually if prostitution were legal and more easily available. Who knows, there might even be fewer sex crimes AND unemployed people. "

Crappie284 wrote on Sep 2, 2008 11:56 PM:

" Ok, we have had enough of this story!! "

J-Red7 wrote on Sep 2, 2008 11:17 PM:

" to otis: talk to the landlords about that one. "

it's her wrote on Sep 2, 2008 10:48 PM:

" "Where is Markey Street?" "

otis wrote on Sep 2, 2008 8:24 PM:

" way to go bpd now clean up markey st "

Rolling Eyes wrote on Sep 2, 2008 8:11 PM:

" This is the defining difference between an upstanding police department and a corrupt one. I'm proud that my home police department has proven it will protect the citizens--no matter who has committed a crime. Contrast that with the Chicago PD... "

Realist wrote on Sep 2, 2008 7:42 PM:

" I can't wait to see the other 2 video reports of this. Anyone who thought the "house hunting" story was legit, take a look at the video. There was evidence that already pointed to Pelo even BEFORE that incident. The late night house hunting just seemed to speed up what was going to happen eventually. Thankfully it happened before he got to another victim. I've been critical of the BPD in the past, but I have to say, they did an outstanding job in this case. Kuddos to all of those in the BPD who completed this very difficult task! "

flex remmington wrote on Sep 2, 2008 7:36 PM:

" Seriously, enough about Pelo already. By this point, everyone knows hes a guilty scumbag. Its just to bad we dont have a way to keep him alive and rotting for ALL of his 440 years. Enough is enough when it comes to this guy though. I hope i never hear the name again. "

cub fan - bud man wrote on Sep 2, 2008 6:12 PM:

" I can only imagine how tough it could be to have to interrogate one of your own, but job well done guys! One less dirt bag on the streets! "
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