11 current and former Ford Heights officials, employees charged with misusing municipal funds
The Illinois Attorney General charged 11 former and current Ford Heights elected officials and municipal employees with misusing funds for personal gain.
AG Kwame Raoul said the individuals allegedly participated in a scheme to use the funds to pay for airfare, hotel accommodations and "exorbitant spending excursions" in casinos while vacationing in Las Vegas and Michigan City, Indiana.
Raoul filed a total of 79 felony counts for charges including theft of government property and official misconduct against the following people:
- Antone Adams, 59, of Chicago Heights, Illinois.
- Former mayor Annie R. Coulter, 74, of Ford Heights
- Village clerk Nyree D. Ford, 53, of Ford Heights
- Allis Franklin, 78, of Ford Heights
- Mary Matthews Graziano, 65, of Ford Heights.
- Current village trustee Johnny A. Griffin, 67, of Ford Heights
- Former village trustee Scottie L. Hatten, 38, of Hazel Crest, Illinois
- Former village trustee LaDell L. Jones, 61, of Ford Heights
- Dedra D. Lee, 65, of Ford Heights
- Former village trustee Antoina T. McMichales, 56, of Ford Heights
- Current village trustee James E. Morgan, 48, of Ford Heights
Thursday the Cook County Sheriff's Office executed a search warrant at Ford Heights Municipal Hall for most of the day, with officers seen bringing boxes out from time to time. The sheriff's office said they were assisting the attorney general's office with an investigation.
All 11 defendants are scheduled to be arraigned on Sept. 30, Raoul's office said.
"Elected officials and civil servants are rightfully held to a higher standard, making it especially egregious when someone in power intentionally steals from the taxpayers they are supposed to be serving," Raoul said in a news release about the charges. "I would like to thank the Cook County Sheriff's Office and the hardworking investigators in my office for their work and dedication in investigating this case."
No further details about the charges have been released.
