Cop ‘inappropriately’ texting teens in recruiting program charged, Illinois police say

An Illinois cop who advised potential new police officers in a recruiting program for teens was charged Tuesday with child pornography.

Police say he was “inappropriately” texting 16-year-olds in the program.

Mitchell S. Rowan, a former Gurnee police officer, was an adviser in the department’s “police explorer” post — a program that introduces young people to a career in law enforcement, according to a news release.

In March, a member of the group told another adviser that Rowan was “inappropriately communicating with minors through text messages and social media,” police said.

The adviser told the Police Department administration, and Rowan was fired, police said. The police chief also met with members and parents of the program to tell them about the investigation, police said.

Within a couple of weeks, police obtained search warrants of Rowan’s electronic device and social media accounts, police said. Investigators searched through one terabyte of data during the probe, police said.

“Gurnee detectives began a thorough investigation into these documents and conducted additional follow-up as further evidence was discovered,” police said in the news release.

Rowan, 23, of Beach Park was charged with three counts of possession of child pornography, police said. He was in Lake County jail on $100,000 bond.

This story was originally published September 3, 2019 at 3:08 PM with the headline "Cop ‘inappropriately’ texting teens in recruiting program charged, Illinois police say."