Copyright Shaw Local Enewspapers
The 2023 case against a former Joliet Park District official charged with using a district credit card to buy tickets for the musical “Hamilton” and baseball games still remains open in court. On Tuesday, Matt Pehle, 45, of Joliet, appeared at the Will County Courthouse in Joliet for a short hearing that was about scheduling yet another pretrial date for Dec. 2. Since May 18, 2023, Pehle has been facing eight charges of continuing a financial crime enterprise. More than 15 pretrial hearings have been held since then, according to the court docket. When asked whether there are any plans for a trial, a plea or some other kind of resolution to the case, a representative of Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s office said the case is set for a pretrial hearing Dec. 2. Pehle is a former finance director for the Joliet Park District and former CFO of the Forest Preserve District of Will County. In January 2021, Pehle was put on leave from his position with the forest preserve after an investigation of financial irregularities by the park district. A Joliet Police Department investigation led to an eight-count indictment against Pehle. He is being represented by attorneys Neil Patel and Chris Regis, the latter of whom once served as the first inspector general for the city of Joliet. The indictment against Pehle alleges that he used Joliet Park District credit cards to spend thousands of dollars in purchases on sporting events, entertainment and Airbnb. Some of the purchases that Pehle allegedly made with the district card include: • $332.48 for “Hamilton” tickets • $514.72 on Chicago Cubs tickets • $248 at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra • $331.85 for a Six Flags Great America purchase • $601.84 for a “Star Wars” purchase
