Church, Kiddieland among institutions 'strong-armed' by police chief, prosecutors charge

[BlueJessamine]

Source: Chicago Tribune

Former Melrose Park Police Chief Vito Scavo used "extortion and strong-arm tactics" to get local institutions—including bars and restaurants, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church, Navistar and Kiddieland amusement park—to use guards from his security firm for protection, a federal prosecutor charged Tuesday.

But an attorney for Scavo defended his client's law enforcement record.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Stephen Andersson told a federal jury in his opening arguments in Scavo's racketeering and extortion trial that Scavo ran his private security firm out of the Melrose Park police station. He often used on-duty village police officers who were paid twice, once by the village and once by the client, for their service, Andersson said.

"You don't say no to the police chief," Andersson said.

Andersson asserted that a waste disposal company that was paying another security firm $17 an hour for a security guard was pressured into paying $45 per guard from Scavo's firm.

Andersson said that Scavo used the ill-gotten gain to buy a Florida condominium, lease a $60,000 Cadillac Escalade and pay for an $11,000 big-screen television.


Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-scavo-15apr15,0,134506.story

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The former police chief has been charged with racketeering conspiracy, extortion, obstruction of justice, mail and wire fraud and filing false personal and corporate federal income tax returns.

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1. With cops like this...

...who the fuck needs crooks?