Terrence O’Brien has spent much of his campaign for the Cook County Board presidency touting his management of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District and pledging to clean up Cook County government.
But a few donors on O’Brien’s latest campaign finance disclosure forms have a familiar name from headlines of scandals past: Roti.
The Roti family figured prominently in the city’s Hired Truck scandal, taking in more than $5.5 million in city funds, according to published reports.
David Roti, whose company was linked to the scandal, donated $2,500 to the O’Brien campaign. His cousin Timothy Roti donated $4,000.
The two share a famous relative: former Alderman Fred Roti, known as organized crime's man inside City Hall. He was convicted of racketeering and bribery in 1993.
His son, Bruno F. Roti, was involved in a scheme to rip off the Chicago Police Department’s motor pool in the late 1970s and served six months in a work release program, news reports say.
The scheme was recounted earlier this month when news reports uncovered a major player in the scandal was again doing business with the city.
David Roti acknowledged to the Current that he's the former owner of Protect Inc., a business that reaped nearly half a million dollars from the Hired Truck program. He was never charged with any crimes relating to the company's city business.
Timothy Roti, who manages a Rogers Park tavern, was not involved in the Hired Truck program.
When asked why he supported the O’Brien campaign, Timothy Roti told a reporter: “I have nothing to say to you. What I do with my money is my own thing.”
David Roti, who owns a commercial body shop in Gary, Ind., said O’Brien has a record of getting things done and is a good man.
“He’s been around for a very long time. I’ve known him, my family has known him for a very long time. He’s always been a gentleman and gotten things done,” he said.
O’Brien spokesman John Davis says the campaign acted appropriately in accepting the donations.
“If he was never convicted of anything and never charged with anything, I see no harm in that,” Davis says.
Davis adds that if campaigns were to vet all donors for their family ties, no campaign would earn donations.
"We have no problems with their contributions. They're business owners," Davis said.
Windy Citizen 