Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (AP) ― Federal prosecutors are asking a court to freeze $105,207 that political fundraiser Antoin "Tony" Rezko put up as bond before his conviction on fraud and other charges.

U.S. District Judge Amy J. St. Eve on Thursday gave Rezko's attorneys until July 9 to respond to the federal request for the freeze.

"The money is right here so it isn't going anywhere," St. Eve said, referring to the fact that the government still holds the bond money.

Prosecutors are asking the court to order Rezko to forfeit $250,000 as a result of his June 4 conviction on charges of fraud, money laundering and aiding and abetting bribery.

Rezko, 52, a prominent fundraiser for Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Sen. Barack Obama, was accused by prosecutors of squeezing companies wanting to do business with the state for bribes and kickbacks.

He had been free on $8.5 million bond of which he himself posted $380,207. His attorneys are to get $275,000 of that and the government is asking St. Eve to freeze the remainder.

On Wednesday, St. Eve made public a two-month-old letter she received from Rezko in which he said federal prosecutors put heavy pressure on him to come up with information against Blagojevich and Obama. Neither politician has been charged with wrongdoing.

St. Eve put the letter on the public record Wednesday.

"They are pressuring me to tell them 'wrong' things that I supposedly know about Gov. Blagojevich and Sen. Obama," Rezko said. "I have never been party to any wrongdoing that involved the governor or the senator."

"I will never fabricate lies about anyone else for selfish purposes," he said. "I will take what comes my way but I will never hurt innocent people." He described himself as "simply an honest, humble immigrant who believes in the American dream."

Obama's name was barely mentioned at the trial and none of the evidence suggested he had done anything wrong. Blagojevich's reputation was severely tarnished by the testimony and lawmakers at the Statehouse in Springfield have begun talking about impeachment.

Rezko had written the letter in an effort to persuade St. Eve to release him while the trial was ongoing. He had been free on bond after his indictment but was arrested and the bond revoked in January after prosecutors said he had received a $3.5 million wire transfer from a London-based billionaire.

Rezko was supposed to keep St. Eve posted on his finances but had neglected to tell her about the money.

Rezko said the money from Nadhmi Auchi, the Iraq-born chief of the giant General Mediterranean Holding company, was a loan that he needed to pay his legal bills.

Also Thursday, prosecutors asked for an indefinite delay in sentencing attorney Steven Loren, who served as a legal adviser to political fixer Stuart Levine. Both Loren and Levine have pleaded guilty to federal charges and testified as prosecution witnesses at Rezko's trial.

Loren pleaded guilty in September 2005 to obstructing the Internal Revenue Service and agreed to testify in hopes of a light sentence.

Prosecutors said Loren also be called as a witness at the trial of Chicago political powerhouse Edward Vrdolyak, which is scheduled to get under way in September. Vrdolyak, a former Chicago alderman and ward committeeman, has pleaded not guilty to charges he took part in real estate scam.

(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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