ALTON - After 27 years on the force, Captain Scott Golike is retiring from the Alton Police Department.
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Golike has served the City of Alton for 27 years and seven months, he said Thursday during his retirement luncheon. He recently attained the rank of captain after former Alton Police Captain Scott Waldrup retired to become the police chief of Mascoutah, Illinois. Unlike Waldrup, however, Golike does not have plans for another job or career following his retirement.
"I'm planning on getting reacquainted with family and I have a small farm up in Macoupin County," he said. "I have things that need done there."
When asked why he chose to retire now, Golike said he had accomplished everything he originally wanted to do when he joined the police department. He worked in investigations for more than 15 years, attaining the title of chief of detectives for six of them. He was also patrol watch commander, and was recently promoted to the rank of captain, which is the highest ranking in the department.
"It was on my list of things to do," he said. "When I checked that off my list, I decided it was time to move on."
His career moved faster than he thought it would, Golike said. When reflecting on his many accolades and achievements, he said some of the most notable were solving several homicides over his career, which spanned nearly three decades in Alton.
Some of those cases including attaining the confession from Corey Butler, who admitted to butchering someone at Rock Spring Park, a double homicide behind Danny's Lounge involving the son of a St. Louis Police officer, and the case of Sandra Wood, who Golike described as a "nice, sweet lady," who was killed by Perry Henderson at her home on Central Avenue.
"That was an awful, terrible case," Golike said. "It came to a successful end. It was the fastest case for me from arrest to conviction. I think it only took about four months."
More than any case, however, Golike said he was most happy with the relationships he built with his fellow officers and the community during his extensive tenure at the Alton Police Department.
"I hope some of what I did rubbed off on some people," he said. "The relationships I built with everyone here and the community mean more to me than anything."
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