After felony sex charges, Orland firefighter faces disciplinary action
By Mike Nolan mnolan@southtownstar.com July 16, 2012 2:30PM
Updated: August 23, 2012 9:56AM
An Orland Fire Protection District firefighter, accused of sending a nude photo of himself and a sex video to someone he thought was a 13-year-old girl, has resigned.
On Monday, the district’s board of fire commissioners approved a separation agreement with Dean Milenkovic, who was placed on administrative leave with pay last month after he was charged with felony grooming and felony possession of harmful material.
Authorities said Milenkovic identified himself in an online chat room as a 43-year-old from Joliet and asked the “girl” to join him in a private chat. What he didn’t know was that the person he was chatting with was an undercover investigator, according to prosecutors.
At a July 9 meeting, the fire district board changed Milenkovic’s leave to unpaid and filed administrative charges against him, including accusing him of engaging in acts unbecoming a firefighter and leaving his post while on duty, James Roche, an attorney for the board, said.
Under the separation agreement, which was effective Monday, Milenkovic won’t receive severance pay but will be paid for any sick time or vacation time he is owed, Roche said. The separation would not affect Milenkovic’s pension benefits because the fire board has no such authority, he said.
Milenkovic was with the fire department for about 16 years, according to Walter Rafacz, president of the firefighters union. His salary in 2010 was about $169,000, according to district records.
At a bond hearing June 28, prosecutors said Milenkovic, 46, asked the girl for a photo, then sent two of himself. In one picture he wore a T-shirt and baseball cap while in the second he was naked, prosecutors said.
Authorities said that in one exchange in March, Milenkovic sat in a chair in front of a computer, naked from the waist down, and masturbated. In another session, he told the girl he wanted to see her body and arranged a meeting.
Roche said the district believes Milenkovic used his personal computer in the online exchanges. Regarding the allegation that Milenkovic left his post while on duty, the lawyer said he couldn’t say whether that was related to any of the online exchanges.
He said the fire commissioners’ acceptance of the separation agreement ends a “sad chapter” for the district.
The fire union’s attorney, Keith Karlson, contacted one of the district’s lawyers this month, initiating talks that resulted in the separation agreement, which was finalized Monday morning, Roche said.
