Mobile UPI  |   About UPI  |   UPI en Español  |   UPI Arabic  |   UPIU  |   My Account
Search:
Go

Ex-Chicago alderman pleads guilty

|
|
 
  
Published: Nov. 3, 2008 at 4:41 PM

CHICAGO, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- Federal prosecutors say former Chicago Alderman Edward R. Vrdolyak pleaded guilty Monday to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

Vrdolyak, 71, entered a plea agreement amid allegations he arranged kickbacks for lawyer Stewart Levine in the sale of a $15 million property, said U.S. District Court documents.

Levine, who was expected to testify against Vrdolyak, already had pleaded guilty to fraud involving Tony Rezko, a political fundraiser in the U.S. Senate campaign of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, said court documents.

Levine allegedly told prosecutors he was involved in several illegal deals with Vrdolyak, according to court documents.

Vrdolyak, who faces up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines at his sentencing Jan. 9, may best be known for leading white aldermen in a clash with Harold Washington, Chicago's first black mayor.

Vrdolyak, once the Chicago Democratic Party chairman, in recent years had become a Republican.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

Order reprints
  
Join the conversation
Most Popular Collections
The Tibetan Moniam Festival in China Super Bowl XLVI ticker tape victory parade The making of the Oscars
The Chicago Auto Show The Most Desirable Women of 2012 Tu Bishvat Migron settlement
Additional Top News Stories
1 of 30
Valentine's Day Ramallah, West Bank
View Caption
fark
Man celebrates Valentine's Day in Bangkok by lobbing a bomb at a taxi that won't stop for him
How to make a million off of your restaurant in the first year. Step 1: buy an old bank. Step 2:...
From all of us who enjoy working and dining in fine restaurants to amateur VD diners: Leave your...
The secret to making Americans less fat? Secretly swap out their portion sizes and give them a different-colored...
I-Mockery's annual Valentine's Day card collection. The perfect gift for that special someone you...
Duke Sucks, the book