Unsealed Court Documents Shed New Light On Ald. Burke Indictment

CHICAGO — The feds secretly recorded video of Ald. Ed Burke in his City Hall office as part of a massive public corruption probe that led to bribery and racketeering charges against the city's longest serving aldermen, according to federal court records unsealed on Friday.

The 166-page affidavit filed by an FBI special agent in 2018 sought a search warrant to investigate Burke for "conspiracy, bribery and gratuities concerning programs receiving federal funds, wire fraud, attempted wire fraud, attempted extortion and conspiracy to commit extortion."

The heavily redacted document cites interviews with cooperating individuals and the agent's review of audio and video recordings and court-approved wiretaps in making the case for a search warrant.

At the time, former Ald. Danny Solis was secretly cooperating with the feds after becoming the target of a public corruption investigation. The unsealed affidavit sheds new light on conversations with Burke that were secretly recorded by Solis for the FBI.

On Sept. 26, 2016, Solis recorded a discussion getting payment for steering business from the developers of Chicago's Old Main Post Office to Burke's private law firm.

During that meeting, Burke was recorded saying, "I’m of the belief that if you get help from somebody to get some work that they’re entitled to share in it, and it’s just up to us to figure out a way that it can be done so that there’s no pitfalls, legally," according to court papers.

"Listen, it wouldn't be the first time, won't be the last time. I'm a firm believer in sharing the wealth," Burke said, according to the affidavit.

During an Oct. 27, 2016 meeting, Solis recorded a conversation with Burke about getting paid as a consultant if he could "tee up" potential clients. Solis asked if that arrangement would create "legal problems."

"Hey, you're not going to get in any trouble, and I'm certainly not going to get in any trouble at this stage of the game," Burke said, according to court papers.

Burke, 78, who was first charged in 2019, and indicted on 14 felony counts including bribery and racketeering, has pleaded not guilty and remains in office.

A trial date has not been set.