Former Illinois gubernatorial candidate sentenced to 3 and a half years in prison
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — A former Illinois state legislator and candidate for governor has been sentenced after pleading guilty for wire fraud and other corruption-related charges.
Sam McCann, a Senate Republican for Central Illinois between 2011 to 2019 and 2018 gubernatorial candidate for the Conservative Party, has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison. After his prison time, McCann will face two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $683,816.61 in restitution.
Federal investigators were inquiring into McCann’s campaign expenses as early as Feb. 2019. WCIA investigated McCann’s expenses in December 2019 and found $168,665 in secret payroll expenses. A spokesperson for the State Board of Elections described the expenses to undisclosed employees as illegal at the time.
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McCann was indicted in 2021 with seven counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering and one count of tax evasion.
Prosecutors in court argued McCann misused funds from several political committees, including Sam McCann for Senate, McCann for Illinois, and the Conservative Party of Illinois. He used some of those funds to pay for personal cars, mortgage payments, and personal credit card payments.
McCann pleaded guilty to all nine counts in February, and was denied pre-trial release until the sentencing hearing. He was held in the Macon County Jail.
“McCann brazenly betrayed the public trust by engaging in a five-year scheme to defraud and converting more than $600,000 in campaign funds to his personal use,” U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois Greg Harris said. “Today’s sentence appropriately holds McCann accountable for his criminal conduct. I thank the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations Division for their tireless and professional work in this matter.”
Federal law enforcement with both the IRS and the FBI said the sentence serves as a reminder that public officials will be help accountable for corruption.
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“Elected officials are entrusted and expected to protect the interests of the people with integrity — a moral value Sam McCann did not uphold,” FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Jermaine Deans said. “Investigating public corruption is a top priority for the FBI because the crime tears at the fabric of our democracy’s security.”
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