The onetime veteran alderman pleaded guilty just five months after a federal indictment accused him of using the Progressive Reform Caucus as a personal piggy bank, stealing thousands to pay for a relative’s college tuition, skydiving excursions — and even at Lover’s Lane.
Former Ald. Ricardo Muñoz (22nd) pleaded guilty Monday to wire fraud and money laundering, admitting he stole thousands from the Chicago Progressive Reform Caucus to pay for personal expenses like skydiving and a relative’s college tuition.
The onetime veteran alderman entered his plea just five months after a federal grand jury handed down a 29-page indictment that alleged Munoz’s behavior continued after the feds’ aggressive pursuit of public corruption had blown into full view in late 2018 and early 2019. It said he even used some of the money at Lover’s Lane in February 2019.
Richard Kling, Muñoz’s defense attorney, said after court that Munoz “spent decades giving to the West Side community that elected him.”
“Sometimes good people do foolish or stupid things,” Kling said. “He’s admitted to this court that he did a foolish or stupid thing. He’s ready to accept responsibility and pay the price.”
Muñoz, 56, wouldn’t comment.
Muñoz was forced into retirement in 2019 after his wife accused him of physically abusing her. A Cook County judge found him not guilty of misdemeanor domestic battery in June of that year. He was also in counseling that summer for alcoholism.
Before he entered his plea in federal court Monday, Muñoz told U.S. District Judge John Kness he considers himself to be “retired” rather than unemployed. He said he has been living in Riverside, and he acknowledged he had three cans of Budweiser Sunday evening. However, he said he felt fully sober during Monday’s hearing.
Muñoz now faces a likely prison sentence of around a year in prison. His sentencing is set for Jan. 5.
Following Muñoz’s plea, Kness agreed to hold a sealed hearing regarding what prosecutors called an “outstanding bond violation.” The judge asked all members of the press and public to leave the room.
Three sitting members of the Chicago City Council also face separate federal indictments of their own. Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th) is charged with racketeering, Ald. Carrie M. Austin (34th) is charged with bribery and lying to the FBI, and Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson (11th) is charged with tax counts and lying to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
A fourth, Ald. James Gardiner (45th), is the subject of a federal investigation revolving around potential bribery allegations, according to a source. He has not been criminally charged.
Muñoz faced 15 wire fraud counts and one money laundering count in an indictment filed April 29. It accused him of trying to cover his tracks by repaying the money he stole from the Progressive Reform Caucus or by claiming it was for “consulting” or “Election Day expenses.”
The indictment alleged that Muñoz transferred $16,000 in October 2016 from the progressive caucus account to a joint account he held with a family member, and then transferred $15,254 from the joint account to an out-of-state university to cover tuition.
It said Muñoz in December 2016 transferred $16,000 from a loan into the progressive caucus account. Then, in an email, Muñoz told someone who helped prepare reports to the State Board of Elections the original transfer did not need to be reported because the money was returned the same quarter.
The indictment also said Muñoz transferred $9,400 out of the progressive caucus account in October 2018, as well as another $500 in December 2018. In November and December 2018, it said Muñoz made more than $10,000 in cash withdrawals from the progressive caucus account.
In November and December 2018, the indictment says Muñoz also used a progressive caucus debit card to pay for a Southwest Airlines ticket, Los Angeles Kings tickets and a Los Angeles Crowne Plaza hotel stay, as well as at Eddie V’s Prime Seafood.
Federal authorities famously raided Burke’s City Hall offices late in November 2018, a move that first revealed the feds’ ongoing public corruption investigations.
On Feb. 12, 2019, Muñoz used the progressive caucus debit card to spend $160.48 at Lover’s Lane, according to the indictment.
Finally, between January and March 2019, the indictment alleges Muñoz kept others away from the progressive reform caucus account to avoid detection. He allegedly told someone in an Apple iMessage that, “Bottom line. Progressive Caucus has 11K.”
But Muñoz knew the account’s balance was “substantially less than that,” the indictment said. A prosecutor said Monday the balance at that time was “less than $100.”
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