Consultant In Red-Light Camera Scandal Pleads Guilty

By Chuck Sudo in News on Dec 10, 2014 9:40PM

The consultant who played a pivotal role in the city’s red-light camera bribery scandal with the program’s original manager pleaded guilty Wednesday to sending bribes to the former city worker who controlled the program.

Martin O’Malley long denied his involvement in the scandal but will now testify against former CDOT official John Bills and ex-Redflex Traffic Systems CEO Karen Finlay. O’Malley faces up to five years in prison if he doesn’t cooperate. He admitted in court he pass funneled bribes to Bills totaling close to $2 million including use of a condo in Arizona, Super Bowl tickets, a boat, mortgage payments for Bills’ girlfriend and Bills’ divorce attorney fees. O’Malley, for his part in the scandal, pocketed $570,000 in consulting fees. It wasn’t until the Tribune discovered Redflex failed to disclose a $910 hotel bill they paid for Bills that the scandal came to light.

Ensuing investigations by the city and Redflex’s Australian parent company revealed the depth of the bribery scandal and led to the resignations of Finlay and Redflex Holdings chairman Maxwell Findlay and Redflex Traffic Systems losing the red-light camera contract, but not before making $24 million off it in its final year.

Bills and Finlay also denied any wrongdoing in the scandal. [Sun-Times]