A former manager of a truck stop and travel center near Zion has been sentenced to conditional discharge and ordered to repay over $47,000 that he stole from the company.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded on September 5, 2023, to TravelCenters of America, 16650 West Russell Road in unincorporated Zion, for a theft report.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said at the time that the complainant reported the general manager had been stealing money for at least a year.
The money stolen totaled more than $45,000.
The general manager was identified as Joseph D. Woolever, 55, of Gurnee.
Covelli said Woolever was stealing money by taking petty cash and submitting fraudulent invoices for items he had never purchased or acquired.
Sheriff’s deputies and detectives collected video surveillance of Woolever taking money from the store.
They also collected the fraudulent invoices Woolever had been submitting, Covelli said.
Deputies and detectives spoke to Woolever at his residence shortly after taking the initial report and collecting the evidence.
Detectives arrested Woolever and reviewed the circumstances of the case with the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The state’s attorney’s office approved one count of theft over $10,000, a Class 2 felony.
Court records show Woolever pleaded guilty in late September to the charge.
He was sentenced to 24 months of conditional discharge and ordered to pay $47,123.72 in restitution pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement with the state’s attorney’s office.
Woolever was also ordered not to consume alcohol or illegal drugs and not leave the state without court permission, along with several other sentence conditions.