Alderman, Daley relative pleads not guilty to tax charges

CHICAGO (AP) - An alderman who is also the nephew and grandson of two former mayors of Chicago pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal tax charges tied to a failed bank.

Patrick Daley Thompson faces five counts of filing false tax returns and two of making false statements to a federal agency. He was being questioned about $219,000 in loans and other payments between 2011 and 2014 from the Washington Federal Bank for Savings.

Thompson denied the accusations after his indictment on April 29, saying his conscious and clear, adding he is innocent and will prove it during his trial.

During a hearing via telephone before U.S. District Judge Franklin Valderrama, Thompson was ordered to hand over his passport to the government while awaiting trial. The order, routine in federal cases, prompted defense attorney Chris Gair to call the order ``punitive.'Å¥

Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Netols told the judge Thompson declined to be interviewed by court personnel ahead of the hearing. Netols asserted Thompson doesn't want to participate in the process. Gair asserted he and his client want a trial.

Washington Federal collapsed in 2017, eventually leading to federal charges against some of the bank's executives and former customers.