CHICAGO — Illinois State Rep. Luis Arroyo was charged this week in federal court with offering a bribe to a fellow state lawmaker in an effort to influence and reward the lawmaker for supporting legislation that would benefit Arroyo’s private lobbying client, according to the FBI.
Friday, Rep. Arroyo announced he was "retiring" from office abruptly, just as an Illinois House committee was to meet to discuss whether to begin a process to oust him from office.
"I have made the decision that the time has come for me to retire from public service," Arroyo said in his resignation letter to Speaker Mike Madigan.
Arroyo said in his resignation letter that he respected his colleagues and he was resigning in order to "spare the members of this body from having to take such a difficult vote at a time when you are all running for re-election considering how well we have all worked together."
Then Arroyo issued a caution to his colleagues.
"I would like to add that you should all keep in mind that public service should be for a duration of time wherein you are an effective member of the body," he wrote. "Once you have gone beyond your periof of peak effectiveness, you should really call it a day and retire while you can still enjoy the later years in your life."
Arroyo, 65, of Chicago, is charged with one count of federal program bribery, according to a criminal complaint and affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Arroyo made an initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria Valdez and was ordered released on a personal recognizance bond. The next court date was not immediately set.
The complaint was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the FBI; and Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Stetler and James Durkin.
Arroyo has represented the 3rd District in the Illinois House of Representatives since 2006. He has also managed Spartacus 3 LLC, a private lobbying firm in Chicago.
According to the complaint, on Aug. 2, 2019, Arroyo offered to pay $2,500 per month to an Illinois state senator in return for the senator’s support of sweepstakes-related legislation that would benefit one of Arroyo’s lobbying clients. On Aug. 22, 2019, Arroyo met with the senator at a restaurant in Skokie and provided him a check for $2,500 as an initial payment, with the expectation that additional payments would be made for the next six to 12 months, the complaint states. The check was made payable to a nominee of the senator for the purpose of concealing the illicit payment, the complaint states.
Federal program bribery is punishable by up to ten years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines. The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
