Businessman says he paid Mel Reynolds thousands to consult in Africa

Willie Wilson, the Chicago businessman who ran for mayor and president of the United States, testified Monday he paid thousands in consulting fees to former U.S. Rep. Mel Reynolds to seek business opportunities in Africa for Wilson's company.

Wilson took the stand in federal court on the first day of Reynolds' trial on misdemeanor charges that accuse him of failing to file income-tax returns between 2009 and 2012. Reynolds maintains that he collected only reimbursements for business expenses and was not required to file.

But federal prosecutors said Monday that Reynolds made more than $400,000 in income during that time, noting that he announced on a Chicago radio show in 2012 he'd been "earning money as a consultant here in America and in southern Africa."

U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman will decide Reynolds' fate. If convicted, the former congressman faces a maximum of four years in prison. He is representing himself and gave his own opening statement and cross-examined witnesses, including Wilson.

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