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Lewandowski pleads guilty, agrees to cooperate

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Illinois

A Worth Township trustee with ties to several Illinois politicians through his commercial printing business admitted to a federal magistrate judge Monday that he failed to file tax returns in 2017 and 2018 despite making hundreds of thousands of dollars those years.

Richard J. Lewandowski, 61, of Palos Heights, also agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors. He was first charged in early January.

The case against Lewandowski is the first public-corruption shoe to drop in 2021, following a flurry of public corruption cases in 2020. Though it’s unclear exactly how Lewandowski fits into that puzzle, the prosecutor handling his case has handled several defendants caught up in an investigation into the politically connected red-light camera company SafeSpeed. […]

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Stetler told U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez that Lewandowski made $370,342 in 2018 and $213,516 in 2017 but failed to file his tax returns. That failure cost the IRS $52,365 and the Illinois Department of Revenue $10,350, the prosecutor said.

* Jason Meisner…

Lewandowski’s plea makes him the latest Democratic political player to cooperate with federal authorities in a corruption investigation that has stretched from Chicago to the southwest suburbs and Springfield.

Lewandowski, who has served as a trustee in Worth Township since 2013, was closely allied with John O’Sullivan. He’s a former state representative and ally of ex-House Speaker Michael Madigan who resigned as Worth Township supervisor last year amid the investigation involving red-light camera company SafeSpeed.

O’Sullivan was subpoenaed by federal prosecutors about the SafeSpeed probe in 2019, shortly after agents raided the offices of then-Democratic state Sen. Martin Sandoval and a host of suburban mayors as part of a sprawling probe. O’Sullivan has not been charged with wrongdoing.

Lewandowski also is the president of Breaker Press, a Pilsen-based printing company that has received millions of dollars for printing services from politicians dating to at least 2011. That includes more than $100,000 from Friends of Michael J. Madigan for the speaker himself and dozens of candidates, ranging from rank-and-file House Democrats to his hand-picked 13th Ward alderman, Marty Quinn.

Breaker Press has done $14.7 million in state and local campaign business since 1999.

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 1:40 pm

Comments

You always need to file. I guess the penalty for not filing is less than filing a false return?

But it is REALLY easy for the Feds to know you didn’t file.

Comment by Fav Human Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 1:43 pm
Can someone explain/speculate what is happening here? Like the inside baseball of it? I get that he’s being punished for not paying taxes (seems straightforward) but do we have any inclination as to how this relates to ongoing corruption or SafeSpeed? That’s the part I think I’m missing.

Comment by What da Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 1:58 pm
It comes off he didn’t pay his taxes for 2 years then how he’s ‘associated’ O’Sullivan, Madigan, pols like the late senator, Sandoval. Not sure he’s involved in the Safe Speed saga.

“tell me who your friends are and I will tell you who are…” Guilt by Association?

Comment by Pizza Man Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 2:04 pm
I think it means he has dirt to spill, and he’s spilling it liberally.

Comment by Fav Human Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 2:27 pm
Maybe the guy just started going under and did not have money to file. I mean why stop and not pay for two years? Perhaps he knew something by chance and FEDs were looking for a way to squeeze him and noticed he did not file

Comment by DuPage Saint Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 2:55 pm
It is obvious that the Mr Meisner is a part time reporter and a secret member of the House Republican Caucus..EVERYTHING he writes is “because MJM”.. it is also clear he has never been in the 13th ward, trivializing as “hand picked” the current Alderman, who vigorously works 7 days a week for his constituents

Comment by NotRich Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 3:15 pm
Keep in mind that it’s also Ed Moody’s powerbase. His wife is the township’s highway commissioner.

Comment by SouthSide Markie Monday, Feb 1, 21 @ 8:48 pm