Kankakee police arrested a Bourbonnais woman on the charge of forgery following a six-month investigation.

According to a press release, Kankakee police said they arrested 47-year-old Heather Gaskey on Monday.

Kankakee County State’s Attorney Jim Rowe said his office charged Gaskey with two counts of forgery, a Class 2 felony, theft by deception from a person 60 or over on the sale of property valued at $5,000 or more, a Class 3 felony.

The investigation stemmed from allegations involving the filing of altered and forged legal documents related to property ownership within Kankakee County.

The house is located in Kankakee.

The victim and owner of the property lives out of state.

Kankakee Police Chief Chris Kidwell said the Kankakee County Recorder’s Office brought it to the attention of Kankakee police.

The investigation revealed that multiple Quit Claim Deeds were submitted containing altered language and forged signatures, which significantly changed the ownership structure of a property, police said.

These alterations included language establishing joint ownership with right of survivorship, a condition that was later confirmed by the victim as unauthorized and fraudulent.

Kankakee County Recorder Lori Gadbois said the victim and a family member contacted her office in July. They discovered the document had been filed fraudulently.

The alleged forged document was filed with Gadbois’ office in 2023, she said.

Following interviews, document analysis and coordination with the Kankakee County State’s Attorney’s Office, probable cause was established, leading to Gaskey’s arrest, police said.

Gadbois and Rowe each said the work of Kankakee Police Det. Demetrius Williams was vital in bringing the charges.

“He has just taken this on and he was out to get justice, which I wholeheartedly support and encourage all of our law enforcement when they have to deal with, unfortunately, fraudulent stuff like this, Gadbois said.

Gadbois said all county recorders’ offices in Illinois, offer Property Fraud Alert website for real-time monitoring and notification of any potential fraudulent activity. The service is free.

To sign up, go to https://pfa.fidlar.com/ILKankakee and pick Kankakee County. Complete the registration form and submit.

The service will notify you if a document is recorded with your name.

Gadbois said, unfortunately, the victim in this case had not used the service, but signed up afterward.