Nation: The popular Fox Lake, Ill. police lieutenant who died on the job in September had been stealing from a youth program he oversaw and staged his death to look like a suicide, investigators announced yesterday. They said that Lt. Charles Gliniewicz, 52, embezzled thousands of dollars from the Fox Lake Police Explorer program over seven years. Gliniewicz spent the money on mortgage payments, travel, gym memberships and adult websites.

At the time, his death became a matter of national political debate, with some critics saying the “Black Lives Matter” movement was spurring the murder of police officers.

On Sept. 1 Gliniewicz reported that he was chasing three suspects in a swampy area. His body was later found shot with his own weapon and a massive manhunt ensued.

The chief investigator in the case said Gliniewicz had been coming under increasing scrutiny about the finances of the Explorer program. He said, “Gliniewicz committed the ultimate betrayal.”

World: Huge protests that followed in the wake of a nightclub fire that killed 32 people in Bucharest has forced the resignation of the Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta. He said in a statement, “In my years as a politician, I put up a fight in any battle with political opponents. However, I won’t put up a fight against the people.” Ponta has been under indictment since July on charges including forgery, money laundering and being an accessory to tax evasion during his work as a lawyer.

The fire set off a wave of anger about corruption and ineptitude in Romania’s government. The inferno appears to have been set off by an indoor pyrotechnics show and the club had only one exit.

>Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron has suspended all fights to his country from the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el Sheikh because the crash of a Russian airliner in the Sinai desert may have been caused by an explosion. Cameron did not give any supporting evidence to suggest that the crash was the result of an act or terror.

Murdered Ink: The National Geographic Society, the non-profit that publishes National Geographic magazine and runs the cable channel of the same name, laid off 180 people this week in advance of being taken over by Rupert Murdoch’s Fox corporation. The $725 million deal grows the Geographic’s endowment to $1 billion, but traditionalists believe Murdoch and Fox will change to tone of the magazine.

The Obit Page: Melissa Mathison, the screenwriter who wrote one of the most famous lines in the history of the movies — “E.T. phone home” — has died at age 65. Mathison wrote “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial” for director Steven Spielberg, and was also known for her adaptation of “The Black Stallion.”

Mathison met the actor Harrison Ford on the set of “Apocalypse Now” in 1976. They had a turbulent marriage that ended in 1983.

French Fried: Republican presidential candidate Jeb “I’ll fix it!” Bush has apologized to France for saying in the last debate that his opponent Marco Rubio has a three-day “French work week” in Congress. He’s been spammed with protests from the French. Bush said, “I now know that the average French workweek is actually greater than the German workweek.” Now he’s going to hear from the Germans.