DES MOINES – On Wednesday, former Iowa State Patrol Trooper Lance Below turned himself in to the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office and made his initial appearance for charges of first degree theft, which were filed after an investigation into worker’s compensation payments.
Below has been charged with improperly receiving workers’ compensation benefits while working for the Iowa State Patrol and simultaneously working at another job without notifying his employer or his workers’ compensation provider that he was being paid for a second job.
As a result of Below’s failure to report secondary employment, his workers’ compensation benefits continued to be paid without offsetting the earnings of his second job. The criminal charges allege that Below was overpaid a total of $26,604.31.
The facts underlying the charge are detailed in the complaint and affidavit filed in Hardin County District Court, which can be found at www.dps.state.ia.us/commis/pib/Releases/2016/Below_C&A.pdf.
The criminal case was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) and is being prosecuted by the Iowa Attorney General.
Theft in the first degree is a Class C felony, according to Iowa Code § 714.2(1), and carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $1,000 to $10,000.
Below began working as a peace officer candidate on Feb. 25, 2005, with DPS, and held the titles of trooper I and trooper II and was assigned to the Iowa State Patrol’s District 9 in Cedar Falls before his departure. He left employment with the department as a trooper II on Sept. 16, 2015, with an annual salary of $62,753.60.