Chesterfield Man Pleads Guilty in Vets Bribery Scheme

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Thursday that Russell Todd, 69, of Chesterfield, pleaded guilty to accepting illegal gratuities from government contractors while the Director of Projects for the VA Medical Center in St. Louis between 2007 and 2010.        

Todd admitted to accepting approximately $20,000 in luxury baseball tickets, meals and entertainment and a local gentlemen's club from Joseph Madlinger and Michael Woodling while he was steering $3.4 million dollars in work at the VA to their company. 

Woodling and Madlinger have previously pleaded guilty to making the illegal payment to Todd and to defrauding the VA by setting up a front company, purportedly owned and operated by a service for disabled veteran, for the purpose of securing set-aside contracting work for businesses owed by service disabled veterans.        

Todd appeared before Chief U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry, who set sentencing for June 12, 2012. Todd faces up to two years in prison and/or a fine of $250,000.

(Co-defendants Woodling, 53, Fenton, MO, and Madlinger, 71, Dupo, IL, pleaded guilty in February to one felony count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud involving the payment of gratuities to a federal official. They are each scheduled for sentencing in May 2012.)

The case was investigated by the Offices of Inspector General for the Department of Veterans Affairs, the General Services Administration and the Small Business Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Albus is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.