Federal Defense Attorney John Teakell

Political fundraiser Antoin “Tony” Rezko, who is best known for assisting Barack Obama in launching his political career, has reportedly began cooperating with federal prosecutors concerning knowledge he has involving corruption in Illinois. Rezko had been accused of extorting millions of dollars by bribing officials in hopes of receiving favorable state contracts in return. He was found guilty in June on 16 of 24 counts that included federal fraud, attempted bribery and money laundering charges. Rezko was due to be sentenced in September but both parties requested that his sentencing be postponed so that the government could evaluate the extent of his cooperation.

Rezko Cooperates in hope of a Government Motion for Substantial Assistance
Rezko’s attorneys are hoping that the information he provided will persuade the federal government to file a motion to reduce his sentence for substantial assistance to authorities. Formally known as a §5K1 motion, the court can only reduce Rezko’s sentence if the government decides that the information Rezko provides is sufficient to justify the threshold of “substantial assistance” and files the motion before sentencing. A reading of the guideline is very straightforward: Upon motion of the government stating that the defendant has provided substantial assistance in the investigation or prosecution of another person who has committed an offense, the court may depart from the guidelines.

No Indication Rezko has mentioned Obama in anyway Rezko, who has been considered a friend of Obama, has ties that included offering him a job after he graduated from law school, funding his political campaigns and purchasing a property next to Obama’s home. But sources close to the case suggest that based on the testimony at Rezko’s trial, there is no indication that Obama has been a topic of the information, even though it has been reported that Rezko has said prosecutors are pressing him for information about Obama.

It is believed that Governor Rod Blagojevich is considered the most likely subject of the cooperation talks. Blagojevich’s administration is already under a federal investigation over how it handed out jobs and money with advice from Rezko. “I think this strikes fear into the Blagojevich administration and the Statehouse Democrats but not into the Obama campaign,” says state Senator Kirk Dillard, R-Westmont. So it is very doubtful that Senator Obama will be implicated by Rezko in any way.