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State policeman in Drish bribe■#»lt;I? .*».By RON ALD L. KNECHTAn Illinois State Police detective said under oath Thursday he and other detectives listened from the next room as a former Champaign Plan Commission member accepted a bribe on June 20.Thomas Drish, charged with soliciting a bribe in a case before the commission, was bound over to the grand jury at a preliminary hearing in the court of G. Richard Skillman.Skillman decided there is possible basis for an indictment following the testimony by Cpl. Earl Boyer of the state police. The judge sent the case to the grand jury which will return a “true bill” or a “no true bill” of indictment. A new grand jury is scheduled to be impaneled on July 25 and Drish is currently free on a $5,000 bond he posted the day he was arrested.Boyer was the only witness called by Assistant State’s Attorney Robert Steigmann during the 20-minute afternoon hearing ; John Gambel, attorney for Drish, called no witnesses during the pro forma session. Boyer told the court that he and other state police detectives met with Alfred Raufeizen, secretary of the Architectural and Mechanical Services (AMS) Corporation from which DrishI .V-allegedly solicited the bribe, at state police district 10 headquarters in Pesotum on June 19.Boyer said Raufeizen told the detectives that Drish had approached AMS about the possibility of a bribe in the matter of the request for rezoning of the Century 21 lot near campus. The structure was built by AMS, is owned by a land trust of which AMS is the major party and houses the company’s offices.The officer said that detectives then listened as• %Raufeizen called Drish and discussed terms of the alleged bribe.According to Boyer, Drish agreed to take $3,000 in payment before the meeting and $2,000 afterwards if the vote turned out as he promised. Detectives also listened at 3 p.m. the next day from a room adjoining Raufeizen’s office as Drish came to collect the initial payment, Boyer, said.Boyer said he had given Raufeizen 30 $100 bills after recording their serial numbers and that detectives listened to the conversation between Raufeizen and Drish, although they did not see the actual exchange of the money.However, when-Drish left the office the police officers arrested him and found all 30 bills in his possession, Boyer testified.
Newspaper Details
Chicago Daily Illini
Chicago, Illinois, US
Fri, Jul 07, 1972
Page 3
Full Page
Clipped by
Porter C.
IN, USA 28 Jun 2020
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