Jeff McCreary, who has served as the De Soto Police chief since 2018, plans to retire from the department June 1.
“(We) hope to start interviews in May, and get some good applicants,” City Manager Todd Melkus said April 10. McCreary’s current salary is $89,480, Melkus said.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Chief McCreary over the last 7 1/2 years,” Melkus said. “His experience and knowledge were crucial for this department when he came on board during a tumultuous time. Chief McCreary has dedicated his life to police service, and his retirement is well deserved.”
McCreary, who turns 63 this week and lives just outside De Soto, said he had been looking for a good time to retire after 40 years in law enforcement.
On Facebook, McCreary posted, “My decision is based on a lot of factors but one very important one is my faith in the people who work here at the (De Soto Police). A special thanks to Capt. Jeff Wynn who has persevered at my side through some very difficult times in the beginning. It has been an honor to serve the citizens of (De Soto), City Manager Todd Melkus and our City Council. This department will continue to grow and do great things.”
His post also said he was thankful for the opportunity “to affect positive change in the community where I live.”
“It’s been one of my greatest challenges yet (and) gives me a great amount of satisfaction in thinking back to how far we’ve come!” the post said.
McCreary, who served as the Crystal City police chief from 2009-2014, took over as leader of the department on July 15, 2018, succeeding Joe Edwards, who resigned that June after only four months on the job.
“They ran through four or five chiefs in a matter of a few years so there was no real consistency, and it showed,” McCreary said. “(The night the City Council hired me) was the very same night they were going to vote whether they should turn the department over to the county and just disband it altogether. That’s how bad it was at that point.”
Following Edwards’ resignation, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office briefly took over supervision of the department. The same day that McCreary was hired, Sheriff Dave Marshak presented a six-page report to the City Council detailing serious problems Marshak found including problems with policies and procedures; training; weapons maintenance and management; evidence handling; hiring practices; and use of force.
McCreary said the department received some good guidance from the sheriff and McCreary also conducted his own evaluation. He believes he has changed the culture and the outlook of the department.
As far as his 40-year career, he said he is proud of the dozen or so commendations he’s received over the years from multiple agencies and the high-quality training and degrees he achieved. He’s proud that he worked in different aspects of law enforcement and on various high-profile cases.
“The case that stands out the most to me was the Amanda Cates homicide,” he said. “Probably the hardest thing I ever had to do in police work was go and tell (Amanda’s mother) that her daughter (was killed).”
Cates, a Normandy school resource officer, was shot and killed by her boyfriend, Robert R. Brooks, a Calverton Park police officer, at their Crystal City home. Brooks, in 2012, following two jury trials, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for second-degree murder and armed criminal action.
Another high-profile case was the National Food Store robbery and kidnapping on Dec. 18, 1990.
Three men armed with shotguns and a knife robbed the supermarket near I-55 and Hwy. A. One man put a knife to the throat of a female employee and forced her into the parking lot, where she was later released. The men got away and one of the men, Jerry Buck of the Cape Girardeau area, forced his way into Jefferson Oaks Nursing Home, which was less than a mile away, and abducted an employee, forcing her to drive to Illinois.
After a pursuit that began in Jefferson County, a police officer shot and killed Buck. The other two men, James Boyce and Robert Bell Jr., of the Cape Girardeau area, were later arrested. Boyce was sentenced to life in prison following a trial and Bell pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
“For a small-town cop, I’ve done a lot of things,” McCreary said.
He said he plans to spend more time at his ranch and helping out his mother. He said he will take at least a month off before considering a part-time job.