Bolingbrook Police Chief Mike Rompa, a 31-year department veteran, was set to retire.
The tipster reached out in January 2026, alleging Rompa used his village credit card for personal purchases at those three retailers, according to CBS News Chicago. Dozens of the clothing items were labeled “uniform – Rompa” on invoices, the station reported, and included 38 tops, 21 athletic or activewear pieces, multiple jackets and coats, and $700 in alterations.
A Uniform Allowance Stretched Thin
Bolingbrook sets a uniform allowance for police administrators each year in its budget, with the chief and deputy chief required to split it evenly. The village budgeted $3,000 annually for that combined allowance in both the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 fiscal years, but Rompa's own clothing purchases on the purchasing card — $2,081 in one year and $2,838 in the next — exceeded half of that total allowance in both years, per the station's reporting.
Ken Teppel told Rompa to stop buying business attire from Men's Wearhouse once Rompa became chief in 2020, saying there was no longer a reason to keep making those purchases under the uniform allowance. Rompa said he did not remember receiving that instruction. Teppel also said officials reviewed the spending after the fact rather than catching it during the purchases themselves, the outlet reported.
Chair Mats, a Karaoke Machine, and Rompa's Defense
Among the other purchases CBS News Chicago flagged: ten bamboo chair mats bought for nearly $1,600, even though comparable mats sell online for $20 to $40 apiece. He also tried to buy a JBL PartyBox karaoke machine costing nearly $600, a request the village denied.
Rompa served 31 years with the Bolingbrook Police Department.
Rompa's Retirement
Rompa was due to retire June 19 after 31 years with the department.
David Greising, president of the Better Government Association, said Bolingbrook's policy loopholes allowed the questionable spending to happen in the first place, and argued the conduct violated public trust even without rising to a crime. Effective policies and real oversight, he said, are what prevent this kind of inappropriate purchasing from occurring.
Purchasing-Card Problems Beyond Bolingbrook
In response, access to village credit cards remains limited to department heads, and the village has reduced the priority given to luxury purchases. A purchase manager now buys in bulk to secure better vendor rates, and the village approved a Downers Grove police uniform shop as a vendor for replacement uniform items going forward.
Bolingbrook isn't alone in confronting purchasing-card problems. A Richmond, Virginia audit, reported by VPM, found at least $5 million in questionable transactions out of nearly $21 million spent through that city's purchasing-card program. Mayor Danny Avula paused the program in April and canceled roughly 80% of issued cards amid news reports of apparent misuse; the audit was released later, on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. A 2003 audit guide from the U.S. General Accounting Office, hosted by the U.S. Government Publishing Office, discusses safeguards against fraudulent, improper and abusive purchases in government card programs. Illinois law does not automatically entitle departing employees to unused vacation pay — the Illinois Department of Labor notes that such payouts depend on whether an employer's own policy guarantees the benefit. Patch reported Rompa was named Bolingbrook's police chief in 2020.
