SPRINGFIELD– A Republican lawmaker is asking federal investigators to release more details after they raided the offices and home of state Sen. Martin Sandoval, the chief negotiator of the state’s $45 billion Rebuild Illinois plan, in a probe involving kickbacks.
Federal agents took boxes of materials and computers from the longtime Chicago Democrat’s offices Tuesday without releasing any information about what they were investigating. The Chicago Tribune cited an unnamed source in a report that said investigators were looking into allegations of Sandoval steering business in exchange for kickbacks. Sandoval has yet to comment about the raids.
After the raids, State Rep. Grant Wehrli, R-Naperville, sent a letter Thursday to the FBI’s Chicago office asking that the agency send the General Assembly, Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and other state agencies any relevant information needed to protect taxpayer funds.
“With the troubling allegations against Sen. Sandoval, I have grave concerns that the state’s precious resources could be allocated to companies that illegally participated in kickback schemes,” Wehrli wrote in the letter.
Sandoval has yet to release any statement in response to the law enforcement activity and didn’t respond to calls Friday.
“The ink isn’t even dry on the infrastructure bill,” Wehrli said. “That’s a $40-plus billion spend in which Sen. Sandoval had a critical role in drafting that legislation and now we find that he may have been receiving kickbacks.”
Regardless of whether or not Sandoval is found to have accepted cash in exchange for state business, Wehrli said the powerful Chicago Democrat should relinquish his post as chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, if not resign altogether.
“In a court-of-law, you’re innocent until proven guilty,” Wehrli said. “To hold public office, it should be a much higher standard.”
Senate President John Cullerton has not sanctioned Sandoval.
“I’d like to be informed about what’s going on before I make a decision … There’s a presumption of innocence,” Cullerton told Politico on Wednesday.
He also said: “I hope to God that nothing was done to involve the Legislature,” Politico reported.
A spokesman for the FBI’s Chicago office said Friday that the agency had no further comment on the matter.
