Former City of Chicago Alderman Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Using Charitable Funds to Pay

Former City of Chicago Alderman Sentenced to a Year in Prison for Using Charitable Funds to Pay Personal Expenses


CHICAGO — Former City of Chicago Alderman WILLIE B. COCHRAN was sentenced today to a year and a day in federal prison for pocketing money from a charitable fund intended to help families and children in his South Side ward.

Cochran, 67, of Chicago, pleaded guilty earlier this year to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso imposed the sentence in federal court in Chicago.

The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI initiated the investigation after receiving information from the former City of Chicago Legislative Inspector General’s Office, which was headed at that time by Faisal Khan. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Heather McShain and Christopher Stetler.

While representing the 20th Ward in the Chicago City Council, Cochran operated the “20th Ward Activities Fund,” which he purported to use for charitable endeavors to help families and children living in the ward. Cochran controlled a bank account connected to the fund. When soliciting donations to the fund, Cochran falsely represented that all contributions would be used for charitable events, including a back-to-school picnic, a Valentine’s Day party for senior citizens, and events during the holiday season in November and December.

Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/former-city-chicago-alderman-sentenced-year-prison-using-charitable-funds-pay-personal