Emil Jones III, a state senator for Illinois and the son of the previous president of the Illinois Senate, has been charged with federal bribery as a result of a lengthy investigation into the SafeSpeed LLC manufacturer of red-light cameras.
Additionally, he was accused of lying to the FBI. Barack Obama’s political adviser was Jones Jr. The former Senate president remarked,“Everyone knows he is an honest, hardworking legislator,” the former Senate president said. “I intend to fight with him and stand alongside him throughout this process.”
Don Harmon, the president of the Illinois Senate, said: “These are grave allegations. Members of the Senate and all public officials need to hold themselves to a high ethical standard for the public to have trust and faith in our work.”
Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, the leader of the House Republicans, said:
“The Democrat Party of Illinois has become an organized crime family whose only purpose is to shakedown Illinois taxpayers.”
From 2003 to 2009, Jones III’s father served as leader of the Illinois Senate. Because he mentored Obama when he was a state senator, he saw himself as the former president of the United States’s “political godfather.”
The federal government claims that Jones III agreed to limit such studies to systems utilized in Chicago in exchange for benefits offered by SafeSpeed partner Omar Maani, so omitting the systems in the many other towns covered by SafeSpeed from study.
Additionally, Jones III allegedly informed Maani that in exchange for $5,000 and a position for an unnamed acquaintance, he would defend SafeSpeed from legislation in the General Assembly.
On September 24, 2019, the state senator allegedly lied to the FBI about his involvement in the plan.
