Barbara Byrd-Bennett, left, with Rahm Emanuel, who appointed her
[From article]
Barbara Byrd-Bennett, the woman Rahm Emanuel tapped to lead the Chicago Public Schools following a bruising teachers strike in 2012, will plead guilty to corruption charges.
Byrd-Bennett was indicted on charges she would receive money and benefits from firms she had previously worked for, the SUPES Academy and Synesi, in exchange for guiding no-bid contracts worth more than $23 million to them.
"I have tuition to pay and casinos to visit. (:," Byrd-Bennett wrote in an email when talking about the plans, according to the indictment.
Byrd-Bennett has been on leave since April amid the federal probe. At a news conference on Thursday, it was announced she is cooperating with the investigation and will plead guilty as soon as possible.
[. . .]
It was agreed that Byrd-Bennett, Emanuel's hand-picked schools CEO until she stepped down amid the federal investigation, would be paid 10 percent of the revenue of any contract awarded to the companies if she provided "sales services," according to indictment.
"We do have a long and sad history of public corruption in this state," said U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon at the news conference.
[. . .]
Byrd-Bennett and people she worked with discussed the plans in emails, according to the indictment. Fardon did not say how investigators obtained those emails.
[. . .]
Byrd-Bennett is charged with 15 counts of mail fraud and five counts of wire fraud.
[. . .]
Wilmette-based SUPES Academy and Evanston-based Synesi have also been indicted, as have their former owners, Solomon and Thomas Vranas. Byrd-Bennett worked as a consultant for the companies before starting at CPS in May 2012.
Vranas is charged with 15 counts of mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud, two counts of bribing a government official and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Solomon faces the same charges, as well as an additional charge of wire fraud.
The indictment wants Solomon, Vranas, SUPES and Synesi to forfeit an estimated $2 million in money and property related to the alleged violations.
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20151008/downtown/barbara-byrd-bennett-former-boss-of-chicago-public-schools-indicted
Barbara Byrd-Bennett, Ex-Boss of Chicago Public Schools, Will Plead Guilty
By Kelly Bauer and Heather Cherone
[From article]
Barbara Byrd-Bennett, the woman Rahm Emanuel tapped to lead the Chicago Public Schools following a bruising teachers strike in 2012, will plead guilty to corruption charges.
Byrd-Bennett was indicted on charges she would receive money and benefits from firms she had previously worked for, the SUPES Academy and Synesi, in exchange for guiding no-bid contracts worth more than $23 million to them.
"I have tuition to pay and casinos to visit. (:," Byrd-Bennett wrote in an email when talking about the plans, according to the indictment.
Byrd-Bennett has been on leave since April amid the federal probe. At a news conference on Thursday, it was announced she is cooperating with the investigation and will plead guilty as soon as possible.
[. . .]
It was agreed that Byrd-Bennett, Emanuel's hand-picked schools CEO until she stepped down amid the federal investigation, would be paid 10 percent of the revenue of any contract awarded to the companies if she provided "sales services," according to indictment.
"We do have a long and sad history of public corruption in this state," said U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon at the news conference.
[. . .]
Byrd-Bennett and people she worked with discussed the plans in emails, according to the indictment. Fardon did not say how investigators obtained those emails.
[. . .]
Byrd-Bennett is charged with 15 counts of mail fraud and five counts of wire fraud.
[. . .]
Wilmette-based SUPES Academy and Evanston-based Synesi have also been indicted, as have their former owners, Solomon and Thomas Vranas. Byrd-Bennett worked as a consultant for the companies before starting at CPS in May 2012.
Vranas is charged with 15 counts of mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud, two counts of bribing a government official and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Solomon faces the same charges, as well as an additional charge of wire fraud.
The indictment wants Solomon, Vranas, SUPES and Synesi to forfeit an estimated $2 million in money and property related to the alleged violations.
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20151008/downtown/barbara-byrd-bennett-former-boss-of-chicago-public-schools-indicted
Barbara Byrd-Bennett, Ex-Boss of Chicago Public Schools, Will Plead Guilty
By Kelly Bauer and Heather Cherone
October 8, 2015 12:44pm | Updated on October 8, 2015 3:39pm
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