CHICAGO — A former city building inspector admitted to a federal judge Thursday that he demanded a payoff from a property owner who wanted to make renovations, court officials said.
Roberto Uribe, 55, pled guilty to attempted extortion. He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 2.
A recorded conversation in November caught Uribe, who resigned his position after being charged in April, telling the owner of a two-story building that his construction project would be delayed unless he paid Uribe $300, federal prosecutors said.
"What’s going to happen is, if we put a stop on it, it’s going to stop you for six months, seven months,” Uribe told the building owner, according to a criminal complaint. “So now, what’s happening now is you’re gonna give me some appreciation, and you’re gonna hurry up and get this done."
Uribe told the owner that paying a bribe to avoid securing a proper permit "would save money and benefit both of them," prosecutors said.
Uribe earned $78,000 a year as a building inspector, city records show.
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