While prosecutors are making no allegations against Barack Obama in the massive criminal complaint unsealed yesterday against Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a separate civil case in Chicago asserts the president-elect benefited from a shady land deal orchestrated by convicted felon Antonin "Tony" Rezko.
WND obtained a copy of the civil complaint filed in October with the Illinois Circuit Court in Cook County by former real estate credit analyst Kenneth J. Conner. Conner alleges he was fired by his former employer, Mutual Bank of Harvey, Ill., because he objected to land appraisals submitted on behalf of the Rezkos and the Obamas, with the complicity of the bank. Rezko, who was convicted of corruption charges earlier this year that implicated Blagojevich, reportedly cooperated with federal prosecutors in the case against the Illinois governor. As a major fundraiser, Rezko helped launch the political careers of both Obama and Blagojevich. In 2005, Obama admitted to the Washington Post the property deal he made while Rezko already was under federal investigation was a "bonehead mistake." The transaction involved Obama purchasing a multi-million-dollar home in Chicago's trendy Kenwood neighborhood, across the street from the Rezkos, at a discounted price. On the same day, Rezko's wife purchased a strip of land adjacent to the Obamas for the full asking price then sold it to the Obamas for $300,000 less. Mutual Bank had lent Rezko millions of dollars in various real estate transactions over many years. "'I wouldn't have filed this case without doing as much due diligence as possible, including contacting Mutual Bank," Connor's attorney Glenn R. Gaffney told WND. "I believe my client was wrongfully fired by Mutual Bank for objecting to the appraisals involved in the Rezko- Obama transaction." Gaffney asserted Obama's own appraisal contradicts the argument that Rezko paid fair value in the transaction. "This confirms Connor was right in arguing the bank's appraisal obtained to facilitate the Rezko loan appears substantially overstated," Gaffney said. http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=83226 --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
