Monahan Landscaping Owner Indicted – Algonquin Connection

A huge Democratic Party and Mike Madigan Family contributor has been indicted by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.

Just looking at the biggest contributions one can find $108,000 to the state party, $27,000 to Michael Madigan, $25,000 to Lisa Madigan, Dick Mell’s 33rd Ward Organization $10,000 and Rod Blagojevich $5,000.

Among others receiving campaign checks are the recently indicted Arenda Troutman. Another favorite was 45th Ward Alderman Patrick Levar.

And, Mayor Richard Daley even got $1,500.

At the legislative level, I notice William Delgado at the $1,625 level.

The most recent contribution—October 19, 2005–was to the Statesman of the Year State and Local PAC. It got about $23,000 over the years and is connected to Operating Engineers Local 150.

Aidan E. Monahan, 57,the firm’s president, is charged with mail fraud. He lives in Bensenville and has been in a San Diego prison since earlier this month.

The firm is based in Chicago, Arlington Heights and Algonquin.

Monahan charges were unsealed Thursday. He is said to have devised a plan to defraud and obtain money, “including Minority Business Enterprise contracts calling for payments in excess of $1.5 million,” from the Chicago Public Schools.

“Fraud in government contracts is a serious problem. We will continue to prosecute companies that use sham minority contractors, or any other kind of fraud, to obtain public contracts, where appropriate,” U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said. “The school system’s Inspector General was a true partner with the FBI in this investigation and provided extensive assistance.”

During the first three years of this century, Manahan won the Chicago Public School contract to do landscaping for the entire system. It was paid over $8.5 million.

After 2003, a bidding process was set up that required companies to be owned and operated by minorities or women in order to bid on several regional areas.

Another company, identified as “Company A,” was certified as a minority firm in 1994.

It submitted a bid indicating that Monahan Landscaping and another firm would be a subcontractor. Because Monahan was not minority owned and operated, it was limited to 25% of the work.

But the indictment says that most of the work was done by Monahan, using its own equipment, and that the company that won the bid acted as a “pass-through” for Monahan. It was “actually operating Company A as with respect to the Sheltered Market Contract.”

Monahan’s employees ever prepared the cost estimates for the bid and signed off on the maintenance logs and invoices submitted to the school board. Monahan even issued the supposedly lead company’s employee payroll checks, among other functions.

From the description of the scheme, it sounds as if the president of Company A played little more than a courier role, taking mail about the contract to Monahan for processing.

The contract ran for two years, but payments continued until September 18, 2006. The case was referred to the U.S. Attorney’s by Chicago Public Schools Inspector General James Sullivan.

If you would like some juicier details, go to this story on TeacherX.


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