From the U.S. Attorney’s Office:
Former Union Official Admits Receiving Unlawful Cash Payments from Chicago Business
CHICAGO — A former high-ranking official in a labor union admitted in federal court today that he accepted $325,000 in unlawful cash payments from a Chicago business and failed to report the payments on his federal tax returns.
JOHN T. COLI SR., 59, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to one count of receiving a prohibited payment as a union officer, and one count of making a false income tax return.
The charges are punishable by a combined maximum sentence of eight years in federal prison. U.S. District Chief Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer did not immediately schedule a sentencing date. A status hearing was set for Oct. 31, 2019, at 9:30 a.m.
The guilty plea was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the FBI; Irene Lindow, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General in Chicago; and Tara Sullivan, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amarjeet S. Bhachu and Abigail Peluso.
Coli served from 2000 to 2017 as the Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local Union 727.
Coli admitted in a plea agreement that from 2014 to 2017, he received quarterly payments of $25,000 from a Chicago business that employed workers represented by Local 727.
The money was paid to Coli in cash in order to conceal Coli’s receipt of the payments, the plea agreement states.
Coli acknowledged in the plea agreement that had law enforcement not intervened, he expected to receive four more quarterly payments from the company and then retire from the union.
The tax count pertains to Coli’s knowing and willful failure to report the secret cash payments as income for the calendar years 2014 through 2016. This conduct resulted in a federal tax loss of approximately $105,000, and a State of Illinois tax loss of approximately $12,500.
In addition, Coli acknowledged in the plea agreement that he received income and other benefits from representatives of businesses that dealt with Local 727 that were not properly disclosed to the U.S. Department of Labor.
According to the plea agreement, the benefits included meals in Las Vegas and other cities, free box seat tickets to National Football League and Major League Baseball games, use of a yacht in the U.S. and Italy, and periodic cash payments.
Sounds like labor racketeering.
He has relatives in McHenry County.
If anyone thinks dealing with a union is just negotiating at a table think again.
This is an excellent example of what happens to businesses that have to deal with corrupt union goons.
Recently heard on radio talk show the host wondering what happened to Jimmy Hoffa. He disappeared back in the 70’s.
Hey Bred Winner –
Jimmy Hoffa SR disappeared in the 70’s
His son – Jimmy Hoffa Jr has been the head of the Teamsters since 1998!
There are just as many corrupt business goons – they love to screw their employees.
Hey! Hey! Hey! My professor taught me that private sector leaders are sacred cows. Let us pray…tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock, meeeeeeoooooooowwwwwwwwwwww…
1 down, 665 to go.
And that’s just Cook Co.
No professor teaches that.
Here’s some Hey Hey non fiction from Wrigley Field in April and May of 1970.
youtube.com/watch?v=UvOr5t9mRe0
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Yesterday was the anniversary of the disappearance of the most famous Teamster, Jimmy Hoffa Sr.
Mr. Hoffa disappeared 44 years ago from the parking lot of the Machus Red Fox Restaurant (now Andiamo Italia), 6676 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Township, Michigan on July 30, 1975.
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The Teamsters are predominantly a private sector truck drivers union, although they represent some other categories of workers and have some public sector locals too.
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Here’s some more non fiction.
If Mr. Llavona does not receive another pay hike (almost impossible) and remains employed long enough to achieve 35 years of service (years of service is typically less than years worked), his starting pension will now be over $100,000.
That starting pension will increase 3% annually, as do all state pensions, so the pension doubles by the time one reaches the 24th year of retirement.
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Even though he’s a Cook County high school teacher, McHenry County residents, and residents of every county in the state, are on the hook for Mr. Llavona’s and all TRS pensions, since the state makes multi billion dollar annual contributions to TRS.
TRS is a state liability on behalf of the local school districts.
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TRS is less than 40% funded, with a shortfall of over $75 billion.
Meaning $75 billion should be invested right now, but is not.
The missing $75 billion is earning zero investment return.
That’s a major problem, because the biggest contributor to TRS should be investment returns.
Who pays 100% of the missing principal and interest?
Taxpayers.
On the other hand, employees and retirees participating in the TRS pension system are responsible for zero missing principal and interest.
But the employees keep getting pay hikes, which hikes the local and state contributions to the TRS pension fund.
This cycle of endlessly hiking pay when the pension is severely underfunded is a taxpayer rip off.
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TRS in particular (it’s the biggest state pension) but all state pensions in general are the biggest state financial problem.
Every year since 2001 the state could not truly balance its budget, and the unfunded liability (taxpayer IOU to the pension fund) continued to grow, so where will the state find $75 billion just for TRS?
The state can’t even contribute enough annually to TRS to stop the pension interest from increasing.
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The public sector unions and politicians created this mess, leaving taxpayers with enormous IOUs to pension funds.
Thousands of collective bargaining agreements, thousands of administrator pay hikes, hundreds of state laws hiking pension benefits, all were primary drivers of this fiasco, over a period of decades.
That storm escalated after voters approved the re-written state constitution at a special election on December 15, 1970 which included one sentence about public sector pensions.
The Illinois Pension Scam.
Not to worry Madykahn will make up this loss with his double dipping. “Not”
Fine example why Unions in this day / age are rotten and nothing more then keeping the boss man in gold chains.
When its your time to collect Good Luck because people like this have already swindled all your dues ! and gone to retire in the sunshine state, good luck tracking them down after the offices are closed and their MIA.
Speaking from experience.
Nothing but pure thievery.
Noteworthy is this excerpt from his plea agreement:
“Defendant agrees he will fully and truthfully cooperate in any matter in which he is called upon to cooperate by a representative of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois. This cooperation shall include providing complete and truthful information in any investigation and pre-trial preparation and complete and truthful testimony in any criminal, civil, or administrative proceeding. Defendant agrees to the postponement of his sentencing until after the conclusion of his cooperation.”
Note to Union Goons everywhere: If you think Coli will protect you, think again.
He’s going to take you down!
As of Today, Coli is still listed on the executive board on Local 727’s web page. He is now prohibited by law form holding any position with any union as a result of his conviction.
If any of you teamsters are out there, what’s the matter with you keeping this guy on as secretary treasurer two years after his indictment?
Look forward to more of your union brothers in the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC).
https://salary.bettergov.org/person/angel-r-llavona-8db5f8a1/
Observer…
It is NOT John Coli SR that is listed on the Local 727’s web page!!!
It’s John Coli JR – his son.
http://teamsterslocal727.org/about/executive-board/
John Coli SR was also head of Teamsters Joint Council 25, which represents Teamsters throughout Illinois and Indiana.
The Toilet Bowl State…
What union and local were you a member of?
Not sure if his conviction will keep him from collecting his pensions.
Coli SR wore many hats – he was also a Regional Vice President on the National Teamsters Board.
Probably has a pension from the local, Joint Council and National Board.
The big guys in the Teamsters (like Hoffa and the executive board) have “golden parachutes” when they leave office.
There are some good guys who run union locals and really care about their members.
They are few and far between.
The prodigious researcher and Obsessive Compulsive Disorderly fan of transparency comes back to the discussion. Here are some details about this condition:
Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental health disorder that affects people of all ages and walks of life, and occurs when a person gets caught in a cycle of obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are unwanted, intrusive thoughts, images, or urges that trigger intensely distressing feelings. Compulsions are behaviors an individual engages in to attempt to get rid of the obsessions and/or decrease his or her distress.
Most people have obsessive thoughts and/or compulsive behaviors at some point in their lives, but that does not mean that we all have “some OCD.” In order for a diagnosis of obsessive compulsive disorder to be made, this cycle of obsessions and compulsions becomes so extreme that it consumes a lot of time and gets in the way of important activities that the person values. Obsessions are thoughts, images or impulses that occur over and over again and feel outside of the person’s control. Individuals with OCD do not want to have these thoughts and find them disturbing. In most cases, people with OCD realize that these thoughts don’t make any sense. Obsessions are typically accompanied by intense and uncomfortable feelings such as fear, disgust, doubt, or a feeling that things have to be done in a way that is “just right.” In the context of OCD, obsessions are time consuming and get in the way of important activities the person values. This last part is extremely important to keep in mind as it, in part, determines whether someone has OCD — a psychological disorder — rather than an obsessive personality trait.Even if the content of the “obsession” is more serious, for example, everyone might have had a thought from time to time about getting sick, or worrying about a loved one’s safety, or wondering if a mistake they made might be catastrophic in some way, that doesn’t mean these obsessions are necessarily symptoms of OCD. While these thoughts look the same as what you would see in OCD, someone without OCD may have these thoughts, be momentarily concerned, and then move on. In fact, research has shown that most people have unwanted “intrusive thoughts” from time to time, but in the context of OCD, these intrusive thoughts come frequently and trigger extreme anxiety that gets in the way of day-to-day functioning.
Stay tuned…tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock, meeeeeeoooooooowwwwwwwwwwww…
Do you mean like, “Stay tuned…tic, tock, tic, tock, tic, tock, meeeeeeoooooooowwwwwwwwwwww…”
In 2018 Mr. Llavona was in his 24th year teaching.
What will the future pay be for Mr. Llavona?
What will the starting pension be for Mr. Llavona?
Calendar Year – Years Teaching – Pensionable income
2018 – 24th – $137,020
2019 – 25th – ?
2020 – 26th – ?
2021 – 27th – ?
2022 – 28th – ?
2023 – 29th – ?
2024 – 30th – ?
2025 – 31st – ?
2026 – 32nd – ?
2027 – 33rd – ?
2028 – 34th – ?
2029 – 35th – ?
Mr. Llavona is in TRS Tier 1.
35 years of service is required for TRS Tier 1 full benefits (Tier 2 aka Tier II applies to those who began their career on or after January 1, 2011).
Years of service is almost always less than years worked due to exchanging unused sick days for years of service credit.
Teachers and administrators can rollover sick days from year to year.
For example, up to 340 days of unused sick days can be exchanged for 340 years of service credit.
This comes in very handy at retirement, since a full TRS year is considered 170 days.
Thus 340 days would be 2 years.
Exchange 340 sick days for years of service credit, and retire 2 years earlier.
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Tic Tock the pension clock.
Shhhhhhhh don’t let the cat out of the bag.
That would be considered obsessive.
Wouldn’t want to educate the taxpayers too much.
Recap.
$137K in his 24th year as an Illinois public high school teacher in 2018.
The starting annual pension of over $100K assumes he never receives another pay hike and achieves 35 years of service.
Unless he gives up or does something stupid, his starting pension is on track to be well over $100K annually.
Plus, the pension increases 3% annually in retirement as he is part of TRS Tier 1.
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McHenry County taxpayers (and taxpayers in every county) heavily fund the TRS pension system.
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The cost in 2018 for state taxpayers to fund that and all TRS teacher and education administrator pensions was 43% of payroll.
That’s an incredibly high number.
The 43% was determined as follows.
45.19% – .58% – .89%.
The expected fiscal year 2018 membership payroll was estimated to be $10,441,324,011.
That’s per a January 6, 2017 letter from TRS to Bruce Rauner, John Cullerton, Christine Radogno, Michael Madigan, Jim Durkin, and Ken Kent and Gene Kalwarski of Cheiron, in accordance with 40 ILCS 5/16-158 (A-5).
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So to determine the cost to state and local taxpayers for Mr. Llavona’s employment in 2018, add his pensionable income and the state contribution to TRS.
$137K x 1.43 = $195K.
The ESL high school Mr. Llavona actually cost state and local taxpayers $195K in 2018.
$58K was due to the state contribution to TRS ($195K – $137K = $58K).
Mr. Llavona is currently employed at Maine West High School in Des Plaines, which is part of Maine Township High School District 207 in Cook County.
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The employer normal cost rate of the state contribution to TRS was 10%.
That’s the current year cost and doesn’t include the unfunded liability portion.
So the unfunded liability portion of the state contribution to TRS was 33% (43% – 10% = 33%) of membership payroll.
Membership payroll is the employees (teachers and administrators) contributing to TRS (as opposed to IMRF) that year.
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That’s one example of how the state contribution to TRS hikes the cost of public education.