Stroger aide Oglesby arrested on corruption charges

Carla Oglesby, deputy chief of staff for Cook County Board President Todd Stroger, was arrested Monday and charged with three felonies in an ongoing corruption investigation.

Oglesby was being held in a Chicago police jail overnight while she awaits a bond hearing Tuesday at 26th and California in Chicago. She is being charged with theft of government property, money laundering and official misconduct.

Andy Conklin, spokesman for the Cook County state's attorney's office, which made the arrest, confirmed that Oglesby had been "taken into custody" in a Loop parking garage upon trying to leave her job at the end of the day. "This stems from an ongoing public-corruption and financial-crimes investigation," he said.

Oglesby, who served as Stroger's re-election campaign spokeswoman before joining his administration in the $120,000-a-year post after his defeat in the Democratic primary in February, had been under investigation over so-called 24-9 contracts, including one issued to her own CGC Communications public-relations firm.

The contracts are named for being just under the $25,000 threshold requiring approval by the Cook County Board. Oglesby issued one to CGC for $24,975 in the days immediately after her hiring.

Oglesby later responded that she was not in charge of the firm at the time the contract was issued, but Evanston Democratic Commissioner Larry Suffredin pointed out when it was discovered that ownership, not control, is at issue in such cases.

"Obviously, it's something being investigated, and we can't comment on an investigation," said Stroger spokesman James Ramos.

Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez was planning a news conference for Tuesday.

The Stroger administration was criticized for issuing several 24-9 contracts after the president lost his re-election bid last winter. The state's attorney and the county inspector general confirmed an investigation was ongoing, but this is the first arrest in the probe.

Ramos said he was uncertain if other arrests would be forthcoming. "I have no clue," he said. "I don't even know what's going on."

• ABC 7 Chicago contributed to this report.