U.S. Attorney John Lausch will announce an indictment of former House Speaker Mike Madigan on racketeering charges at a press conference at 4:30 today, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Madigan has long been the apparent focus of the sprawling federal corruption probe in Illinois, with many allies and close associates facing indictment. Utility giant Commonwealth Edison admitted in federal court that it had engaged in a bribery scheme to gain favor with Madigan.

Madigan stepped down from his longtime role as Speaker in January of 2021, and from his seats in the Illinois House and as head of the Democratic Party of Illinois weeks later.

The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury after a more than two-year investigation, sources told the Tribune.
Lausch will be joined by Emmerson Buie, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Chicago field office, and Justin Campbell, who runs the IRS’s criminal investigations office here.

More to come.

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