Danny Solis has <\/b>been called \u201cExhibit A\u201d<\/a> in the world of corruption.<\/p>\n He\u2019s been labeled a \u201cmassive tax cheat\u201d and a \u201cmalignant tumor.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n But he\u2019s also been described as a \u201cwalking microphone\u201d<\/a> and one of the \u201cmost significant\u201d undercover government moles Chicago has seen in decades. Prosecutors say he delivered \u201cextraordinary\u201d<\/a> cooperation that helped them snare two of the city\u2019s most powerful politicians.<\/p>\n Now, nearly nine years after FBI agents knocked on his door in the South Loop and gave him a choice that would define his legacy, the feds on Friday asked U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood to toss the lone bribery charge filed against the 25th Ward\u2019s ex-City Council member.<\/p>\n The request, part of a deal Solis struck<\/a> with the feds in 2018, brings his case to a remarkable but long-expected conclusion. An FBI special agent once needed 100 pages to detail the allegations against Solis in a court affidavit. Now, Solis appears to be square with the federal government. Barring a surprise twist, he\u2019ll walk away with his freedom, criminal record and pension intact.<\/p>\n Prosecutors offered in their motion Friday to appear in court to make their request in-person, if Wood prefers.<\/p>\n Either way, the move is the result of an \u201cextraordinary, if not unprecedented,\u201d deal for a once high-ranking elected official, said former federal prosecutor Patrick Collins. But Solis also wore a wire and helped the feds convict ex-Ald. Edward M. Burke<\/a> and former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan<\/a>, two record-breaking politicians who appeared untouchable to generations of Chicagoans.<\/p>\n Collins, now a partner at the King & Spalding law firm, said \u201cthat\u2019s the other hand of it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s, in part, a statement of the value [prosecutors] put on the people he was cooperating against,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The feds\u2019 motion is also a sign that an era is ending at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse. The probe that brought down Solis, Burke and Madigan dates back to 2014. Though it spanned the tenures of ex-U.S. Attorneys Zachary Fardon and John Lausch, it was long led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu. He left the office<\/a> just three weeks ago.<\/p>\n Bhachu\u2019s departure came shortly after a jury convicted Madigan in February of bribery conspiracy <\/b>and other crimes. The former speaker faces sentencing in June<\/a>. Burke is already in prison<\/a>. And now, the U.S. attorney\u2019s office is getting new leadership, with Andrew Boutros<\/a> taking over Monday as Chicago\u2019s top federal prosecutor on an interim basis.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, it\u2019s been nearly six years since Solis held public office in Chicago. Former Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed him to represent the 25th Ward back in 1996. A onetime political activist<\/a>, Solis held the seat for decades and rose to become the powerful chairman of the zoning committee. He left office in 2019.<\/p>\n Brian Jackson\/ For the Sun-Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Before his term ended that year, the Sun-Times obtained a mistakenly unsealed FBI affidavit that alleged Solis received \u201ca steady flow of personal benefits\u201d<\/a> from people for whom he\u2019d taken, or offered to take, official action at City Hall. The benefits allegedly included Viagra, prostitution services, campaign contributions and the use of a multi-million dollar farm.<\/p>\n The Sun-Times reported the allegations and revealed Solis\u2019 undercover work<\/a>, effectively ending his political career.<\/p>\n The FBI originally filed its bombshell affidavit May 27, 2016, five days before agents knocked on Solis\u2019 door<\/a> on Delano Court. They walked into his home, took a seat near his kitchen and told him to listen, not speak. Then, they began to share some of the evidence they\u2019d gathered against him, including a secret recording of a meeting Solis had with Madigan<\/a> and others.<\/p>\n FBI Special Agent Ryan McDonald <\/b>has testified multiple times about the encounter in the years since. He said agents chose not to raid Solis\u2019 offices at City Hall the day of that visit on June 1, 2016. They kept their probe under wraps, and Solis quickly agreed to wear a wire.<\/p>\n Solis worked undercover until January 2019, also allowing the FBI to record his phone calls. Solis recorded Burke and Madigan among others, capturing Burke\u2019s damning 2017 quip that \u201cthe cash register has not rung yet\u201d as well as the infamous inquiry, \u201cdid we land the, uh, the tuna?\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n Still, it wasn\u2019t until Dec. 26, 2018, <\/b>that Solis signed the deal which led prosecutors to file their request Friday. The document, also signed by Bhachu, was publicly filed April 12, 2022. <\/b><\/p>\n That was three years after Solis disappeared from public life.<\/p>\n Known as a deferred-prosecution agreement, the deal required Solis to admit to a specific bribery scheme, cooperate with prosecutors and follow the law.<\/p>\n In exchange, the feds agreed they would not prosecute Solis for any related crime. <\/b>They also agreed to seek dismissal of the bribery charge at the end of a three-year period.<\/p>\n The deal says Solis\u2019 cooperation would continue until the feds notify him in writing that it is complete. The motion filed Friday by Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane MacArthur noted that \u201cno such written notification has been provided by the government to Solis and Solis\u2019s obligation to cooperate remains ongoing.\u201d <\/p>\n The scheme Solis admitted to involved him seeking campaign contributions from a development group that needed his help at City Hall. Its owners included Chicago sports mogul Jerry Reinsdorf, the Sun-Times has previously reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n During Madigan\u2019s trial, the former speaker\u2019s lawyers argued that Solis hid certain crimes from the feds<\/a>, in spite of their deal. The allegations didn\u2019t seem to sway prosecutors, who had already endured plenty of criticism for it.<\/p>\n Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot threatened to intervene<\/a> in court when Solis\u2019 deal went public <\/b>in 2022. The onetime federal prosecutor <\/b>said at the time she was \u201cdeeply offended\u201d <\/b>that Solis could avoid prison or even a conviction despite his alleged crimes.<\/p>\n The mayor eventually backed off, though. Prosecutors told a judge they\u2019d engaged in \u201cproductive conversations\u201d at City Hall.<\/p>\n Later, the feds took heat from U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall, who is now the city\u2019s chief federal judge.<\/p>\n When Kendall sentenced Burke<\/a> in June 2024, she told the courtroom that, \u201cif the prosecutors\u2019 office is so concerned about public corruption, it does seem a little unwarranted to say that Mr. Solis will get absolutely no time at all for his criminal activity.\u201d<\/p>\n Former Alderman Danny Solis walks into the Everett M. Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in the Loop prior to Michael Madigan\u2019s trial, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/p>\n Anthony Vazquez\/Sun-Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Five months later, Solis took the stand in Madigan\u2019s trial and testified for 21 hours over six days. The jury foreman told the Sun-Times after the trial he saw Solis as <\/b>\u201ca dirty operator.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n But Madigan should have known that when dealing with Solis, the foreman said. The jury convicted Madigan, in part, for a plot to install Solis on a state board in exchange for Solis\u2019 help securing private business for Madigan\u2019s tax appeals law firm.<\/p>\n There was a time when it wasn\u2019t clear if Solis would ever appear<\/a> on a witness stand, though. Prosecutors chose not to summon him during Burke\u2019s trial in 2023. Burke\u2019s defense attorneys called him as a \u201chostile\u201d witness<\/a>, instead.<\/p>\n Solis\u2019 debut on the stand that day lasted about three hours.<\/p>\n Later, during closing arguments, Burke\u2019s attorneys pilloried prosecutors<\/a> for failing to call Solis themselves.<\/p>\n \u201cThat should give you pause,\u201d Joseph Duffy, one of Burke\u2019s attorneys, told the jury. \u201cThe fact that they ran an undercover investigation on Mr. Burke for 30 months \u2014 with the star witness being Danny Solis \u2014 and they didn\u2019t have the decency to bring him to you.\u201d<\/p>\n But Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker told the jury to think about the \u201cbest evidence\u201d<\/a> they\u2019d been given of Burke\u2019s intent in the racketeering and bribery case.<\/p>\n The \u201cbest evidence,\u201d she said, was the words that came out of Burke\u2019s mouth \u2014 and captured forever on Solis\u2019 microphone.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Former](\"https:\/\/cst.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/c41bfaa\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/2917x1946+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fbb%2F85%2Faa11dac54894bc9af9e6b8c6d1ec%2Fmadigan-112624-20.jpg\")
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