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Union Official Accused of Extorting Local Business in Chicago Area
CHICAGO — A high-ranking official in a Chicago-area labor union has been charged with attempting to extort a local business out of $25,000 in cash payments, according to a federal indictment returned today.
JOHN T. COLI SR., the former President of Teamsters Joint Council 25, allegedly used the threat of economic harm to extort quarterly payments of $25,000 from a local company between October 2016 and April 2017, the indictment states.
The indictment, returned in U.S. District Court in Chicago, charges Coli with one count of attempted extortion and five counts of demanding and accepting a prohibited payment as a union official. If convicted, Coli faces up to 20 years in prison for the attempted extortion charge and up to five years in prison for each of the five counts of demanding and accepting a prohibited payment.
Coli, 57, of Chicago, allegedly accepted a total of $125,000 in cash payments from the local business during the time period in question. The indictment seeks forfeiture from Coli of at least $100,000.
The indictment was announced by Joel R. Levin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Michael J. Anderson, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and James Vanderberg, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General in Chicago.
Coli previously served as International Vice President of the Central Region of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the indictment states. He is currently set to be arraigned in federal court in Chicago at a future time to be set by the Court.
The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Key Facts
- State: Illinois
- Category: Public Corruption|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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