* Tina Sfondeles with the big scoop…
Cook County’s chief watchdog has concluded that more than $330,000 in property tax breaks and refunds that Democratic gubernatorial candidate J.B. Pritzker received on one of his Gold Coast mansions — in part by removing toilets — constituted a “scheme to defraud.”
Cook County Inspector General Patrick Blanchard also recommends in the confidential report that Cook County should try to recover the money from the billionaire. […]
Blanchard writes in the report — obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times — that the Cook County Assessor’s office was “the victim of sworn affidavits containing false representations.” […]
“The evidence indicates that the use of these affidavits was part of a scheme for obtaining money by means of false representations and, in executing the scheme, the responsible parties caused checks to be issued by the Cook County Treasurer and delivered by U.S. Mail according to the direction thereon. […]
“As a result, the County ultimately fell victim to a scheme to defraud, executed in part through the use of affidavits, and which resulted in the property owner ultimately receiving property tax refunds totaling $132,747.18 for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014, as well as additional tax savings of $198,684.85 for the years 2015 and 2016,” the report states.
Uh-oh.
According to the story, one of the affidavits was signed by Pritzker’s brother-in-law. Another was signed by Mrs. Pritzker’s personal assistant.
…Adding… Oof…
Under a header “Evidence of a plan to Defraud Cook County” the report includes a work order email dated Oct. 5, 2015 from a project manager to a plumbing company vice president states M.K. Pritzker, J.B. Pritzker’s wife, wanted the toilets pulled.
“She is going to have the house re-assessed as an uninhabitable structure,” the email says. “To do this, she would like to have us pull all toilets and cap all toilet lines in the house. Then after the assessment, she would like us to put the 1st Floor toilet back in and have this as the one functioning bathroom in the place (she will then be finishing out the front room for JB’s [Jay Robert ‘J.B.’ Pritzker’s] hangout/meeting are].”
The full IG report is here.
*** UPDATE 1 *** The Rauner campaign got this one out quick…
“This Inspector General report proves what we knew all along - JB Pritzker is a fraud. From the very beginning, Pritzker was devising a corrupt scheme to defraud Illinois taxpayers by ripping toilets out of his mansion. This wasn’t a standard appeal as Pritzker claimed. Instead, he lied to voters. It’s clear from Pritzker’s repeated use of fraudulent tax dodging that he doesn’t have the character and integrity to be governor.” - Will Allison, Rauner campaign Communications Director
As I write this (4:46 pm), Pritzker is holding an event with Hillary Clinton and tons of reporters. Click here. Timing is everything.
…Adding… As I’m reading through the report, it appears that one of the problems is that Pritzker’s brother-in-law signed an affidavit claiming the property had “no functional bathrooms” from January 1, 2012 through October 15, 2015. However, the toilets were apparently only removed on October 5, 2015 - ten days prior to the affidavit signature.
…Adding… Reading further, however, it looks like there’s an overstatement on the part of the inspector general. “The property has been vacant and uninhabitable since January 1, 2012.” And then the next sentence is: “There are no functioning bathrooms or kitchen.” So, the Pritzkers didn’t actually claim that there had been no toilets since 2012.
*** UPDATE 2 *** Pritzker…
