Ford Heights Mayor Charles Griffin was convicted Monday of embezzling village funds, although he was not discovered answerable for stealing the complete $147,000, prosecutors mentioned.
Cook County Judge James Obbish discovered Griffin responsible of a gross misdemeanor depend of embezzling between $10,000 and $100,000 in public funds “for the good thing about himself, his household and buddies” from 2014 to 2017, each throughout and after his first time period as mayor of Ford Heights.
Griffin served as mayor of the city of 1,750 residents from 2009 to 2017 and, regardless of being beneath federal indictment, was re-elected to the place in 2021.
Attorneys introduced all of the proof final week and shutting arguments had been introduced on Tuesday.
“An individual shall be ineligible to take the oath of workplace for municipal workplace if that individual … has been convicted in any court docket situated throughout the United States of any notorious felony, bribery, perjury, or different excessive crime …,” based on present Illinois regulation.
Prosecutors charged Griffin after former Mayor Annie Coulter’s workplace found and reported to authorities secret accounts containing $147,000 in public funds shortly after she took workplace in 2017.
Griffin was booked into jail in August 2018 and launched shortly thereafter on bond. Cook County District Attorney Kim Foxx issued a press launch on the time condemning “theft by an individual able of public belief,” saying it “won’t be tolerated.”
“Immediately after Griffin left workplace, the village found irregular exercise in BMO Harris Bank accounts held within the village’s title that didn’t seem to have been beforehand disclosed to village trustees and/or different village officers,” Foxx mentioned within the launch.
Two of the accounts listed Griffin’s private deal with, authorities mentioned. One of the accounts contained deposits from the state treasurer’s workplace representing the village’s share of online game taxes, the state’s legal professional mentioned.
“A good portion of the funds withdrawn from this account had been used for Griffin’s private bills,” the workplace mentioned in 2018, including that the debit card transactions included spending at Walmart, Home Depot, Menards, LA Fitness and numerous eating places.
