Northbrook doctor pleads pleads guilty to hiding $3 mil. from IRS

The business partner of a key government witness against in the investigation of corruption in the Blagojevich administration pleaded guilty Tuesday to hiding $3 million that he siphoned out of a charity from the tax collector.

Robert Weinstein, 63, admitted that he and millionaire campaign contributor Stuart Levine took part in a scheme under which they obtained $6 million from the charity in return for a pair of promissory notes that turned out to be worthless.

Levine was the government's star witness at the fraud trial of political fixer Antoin "Tony" Rezko, a major fundraiser for ousted Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Rezko was convicted of shaking down businesses seeking state contracts for campaign contributions.

Levine has already admitted his role in the scheme to get the $6 million from the North Shore Supporting Organization -- a group created to raise funds for Finch University of Health Sciences/Chicago Medical School.

In place of the $6 million, the two men admitted they gave promissory notes to the organization. Levine later arranged to have the notes sold to a foreign businessman who forgave the debt as a gift to Levine and Weinstein.

The two men split the money.

On his tax return for calendar year 2003, Weinstein reported that he and his wife had total income of $6,210,141 -- exactly $3 million less than they received.

At the Rezko trial, Weinstein was heard talking with Levine on a number of tapes the FBI made.

Weinstein had been charged initially with wire fraud, mail fraud and lying to the FBI when he said that Levine never told him about Rezko's political clout.

But the government dropped those charges in exchange for Weinstein's willingness to plead guilty to tax fraud.

Weinstein faces a possible federal prison sentence of 24 to 46 months. U.S. District Judge Ruben Castillo set sentencing for July 1.