The indictment: here
Anyone who thought former House Speaker Mike Madigan would slip away from the feds was wrong.
“Today a federal grand jury returned a 22-count indictment charging former House Speaker Michael Madigan with racketeering conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud, and extortion offenses, said U.S. Attorney John Lausch at a late-afternoon news conference Wednesday in Chicago.
Madigan allegedly used his political, government, personal, and business connections as a kingdom of favors and money. “The indictment alleges that Madigan and other members of the enterprise unlawfully solicited benefits from businesses and other private parties,” said Lausch. “As alleged in the indictment, Madigan unlawfully requested that various companies with interest in state legislation – including utility Commonwealth Edison – pay Madigan’s associates as a reward for their loyalty to Madigan, at times in return for performing little to no legitimate work for those businesses.”
Among those swept up in the federal investigation are Madigan confidant Mike McClain and top officials of ComEd.
Demonstrating a flair for understatement, Lausch said, “Unfortunately, this type of criminal conduct drastically undermines the public’s confidence in our government.
“Simply put, it’s not a good thing.”
The former speaker says he’s guilty of nothing more than helping people get jobs.