Illinois Quick Hits: Ex-Chicago housing director indicted in alleged kickback scheme

Illinois Quick Hits: Ex-Chicago housing director indicted in alleged kickback scheme

Spread the love

(The Center Square) – A former Chicago Housing Authority property director is accused of steering more than $4.8 million in city business to a construction company in exchange for more than $421,000 in kickbacks.

Ryan Ross, 50, of Bolingbrook and Vanessa Rhodes, 47, of Chicago are both charged with eight counts of honest services fraud.

A federal indictment accused Ross of receiving the kickbacks in 2023 and 2024 from Rhodes, who owns a Chicago company that did business as Twenty Eleven Construction, Inc.

ONE OF FBI’S MOST WANTED SENTENCED FOR MACHINE GUN POSSESSION

A Belleville man who was on the FBI’s Most Wanted list has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for possessing a machine gun.

Dontay Moore, 23, is facing state charges in St. Louis for other offenses, including his alleged involvement in a drive-by shooting that resulted in serious injuries to bystanders.

Prosecutors say his federal sentence will be in addition to any sentence imposed in state court. Moore was arrested by Illinois State Police in September 2025.

ICE-INVOLVED CRASH REPORTED IN CHICAGO

A pursuit reportedly involving federal immigration law enforcement officers ended in a crash on Chicago’s Northwest Side.

WGN-TV reports that the incident came to a halt around 11 a.m. on Tuesday in the 3800 block of North Olcott Avenue.

A witness said several unmarked vehicles followed a red Lexus and appeared to strike the Lexus before it crashed into a tree. Another witness said he later saw a man being escorted from the scene.

REPORT: THOUSANDS DROP OBAMACARE IN ILLINOIS

More than 92,000 Illinois consumers have lost or dropped Affordable Care Act health insurance in recent months.

The Chicago Tribune reports that the unusually large decline followed the expiration of tax credits that had helped to curb the plans’ costs.

Last month, Democrats on the Joint Economic Committee estimated that 120,825 people in Illinois would lose health insurance due to the ACA cuts proposed by President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans.

Leave a Comment





Latest News Stories

Spanberger vows to get Virginians ‘representation we deserve’

Spanberger vows to get Virginians ‘representation we deserve’

By Alan WootenThe Center Square Virginia’s Democratic governor responded to an invalidated election result and the U.S. Supreme Court’s denial of an emergency stay on Friday by saying she’s committed...
EXCLUSIVE: The Oversight Project calls for investigation into Fusus, Oak Brook contract

EXCLUSIVE: The Oversight Project calls for investigation into Fusus, Oak Brook contract

By Greg Bishop | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – The Oak Brook police chief welcomes an investigation into how the village obtained a multi-million taxpayer funded...
solar panels photovoltaics in solar farm

Will County Executive Committee Recommends 600 MW Pride of the Prairie Solar Project in 6-5 Split Vote

Will County Board Executive Committee Meeting | May 14, 2026 Article Summary: The Will County Board Executive Committee on Thursday, May 14, 2026, voted 6-5 to recommend approval of a...
Europe tried wealth taxes. Most gave up.

Europe tried wealth taxes. Most gave up.

By Brett RowlandThe Center Square Democratic senators are advancing a series of proposals to tax America's wealthiest households, with supporters projecting trillions in new federal revenue. Critics, however, argue the...
Will County Finance Logo

Aging Systems and Judicial Mandates Drive Significant FY2027 Budget Requests for Will County Courts and Sheriff

Will County Board Finance Committee Meeting | May 5, 2026 Article SummaryMultiple Will County justice and public safety departments detailed millions of dollars in operational and capital needs for FY2027,...
Will County P&Z Logo Planning Zoning

Meeting Summary and Briefs: Will County Planning and Zoning Commission for May 5, 2026

Will County Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting | May 5, 2026 The Will County Planning and Zoning Commission met on May 5, 2026, to deliberate on several high-impact infrastructure and...
Colorado governor shortens Tina Peters' sentence for election tampering

Colorado governor shortens Tina Peters’ sentence for election tampering

By Liam HibbertThe Center Square Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has shortened the prison sentence of former county clerk Tina Peters, convicted of election tampering related to the 2020 election. The...
No ruling; Florida judge hears arguments in redistricting litigation

No ruling; Florida judge hears arguments in redistricting litigation

By David BeasleyThe Center Square A Florida judge on Friday heard arguments on a lawsuit to block a new congressional redistricting plan in Florida that could give Republicans a four-seat...
Debate grows over bill on gender, abortion care access in child placement

Debate grows over bill on gender, abortion care access in child placement

By Sean Reed | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – A proposed law could allow child services to consider a child’s gender identity and access to abortion...
Lawsuit: D300 secretly gender transitioned student; Seeks to nix IL gender ‘guidance,’ too

Lawsuit: D300 secretly gender transitioned student; Seeks to nix IL gender ‘guidance,’ too

By Jonathan Bilyk | Legal NewslineThe Center Square A mother from Chicago's far northwest suburbs has lodged a lawsuit against her child's public school district, accusing Community Unit School District...

WATCH: Family farm’s decade-long water war with Ecology waiting on WA Supreme Court

By Carleen JohnsonThe Center Square More than nine years after a legal battle began between a Grant County family farm and the Washington Department of Ecology, the two sides are...
Trump says tariffs never came up during China trip

Trump says tariffs never came up during China trip

By Brett RowlandThe Center Square President Donald Trump said Friday that tariffs never came up during his two-day trip to China, even as his administration works to replace a tariff...
Illinois Quick Hits: Report shows 8% of Cook County offenders on electronic monitoring AWOL

Illinois Quick Hits: Report shows 8% of Cook County offenders on electronic monitoring AWOL

By Sean Reed | The Center SquareThe Center Square (The Center Square) – A report from a Cook County judge revealed that 8% of people participating in the electronic monitoring...
Fed funding of pediatrics group questioned over its gender ideology stance

Fed funding of pediatrics group questioned over its gender ideology stance

By Tate RosentreterThe Center Square Parental rights group the American Parents Coalition is urging Congress to review federal funding of the American Academy of Pediatrics, alleging that the organization prioritizes...
Trump’s ‘historic’ visit to China yields some economic, less geopolitical fruits

Trump’s ‘historic’ visit to China yields some economic, less geopolitical fruits

By Morgan SweeneyThe Center Square President Donald Trump returned Friday from his first diplomatic visit to China since 2017, heralding the ‘historic’ nature of the trip. Former President Joe Biden...