Ex-Chicago schools chief indicted in kickback scheme, newspaper reports

The 66-year-old is charged with several counts of mail and wire fraud; each count carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence.

An investigation began when it was found out that one no-bid contract for principal training had been entered into between CPS and SUPES for $20.5 million. Fardon didn’t specify what charges would be involved.

Byrd-Bennett stepped down as the city’s top school official earlier this year.

“Our students, parents, teachers and principals deserve better”, Emanuel said in statement. She was forced out by Byrd-Bennett’s replacement, Eugene Sanders, and then joined Byrd-Bennett in both Detroit and Chicago.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the SUPES contract raised eyebrows even before it was suspected of being illegal.

The school system is weighed down by a massive budget deficit and unmet pension obligations.

“The circumstances surrounding the indictment of the former CEO are unfortunate and mark a sad day for the leadership of our district”, Lewis said.

Read the Byrd-Bennett news release on indictment. In exchange, Byrd-Bennett received hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks, which the collective disguised by funneling them into bank accounts set up under the names of Byrd-Bennett’s relatives, the indictment alleges.

A statement Thursday from CPS spokeswoman Emily Bittner doesn’t mention the charges against the former schools chief.

Solomon has deep ties to the Emanuel administration and helped recruit Byrd-Bennett’s predecessor Jean-Claude Brizard, and recommended Byrd-Bennett to Emanuel, according to the Tribune.

Years later, he and Vranas founded SUPES Academy to train school leaders, and the two other education consulting companies in the northern suburbs. Despite this, he later founded SUPES and played a critical role in having Byrd-Bennett appointed as the new CPS chief.

The 43-page indictment includes criminal charges against Byrd-Bennett and also against two owners of the academy and an associated company.

“We were truly horrified when 50 schools closed, neighborhood school budges were slashed, and this contract was given to a sketchy operator for $20 million”, Katten says. To hide the kickbacks, SUPES planned to deposit the proceeds in college funds for two of Byrd-Bennett’s relatives and award her the rest as a “signing bonus” when her time at CPS came to an end and she returned to SUPES as a consultant. Solomon and Vranas also face counts of bribery of a government official and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. A magistrate judge on Thursday set recognizance bonds and they will be arraigned on a later date before U.S. District Judge Edmond Chang, records show. Vranas is quoted in one email as saying, “Everyone sucks and is greedy”.