Eddie Jackson of the East Saint Louis City Council is now a Member of the House.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)
December 16, 2005 Friday
FIRST EDITIONTapes indicate bribery plan by police chief
BYLINE: By Michael Shaw ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
SECTION: METRO; Pg. C12
LENGTH: 404 words
DATELINE: EAST ST. LOUIS
Former East St. Louis Police chief Ron Matthews helped arrange a $3,000 bribe to a city council member, according to taped conversations presented Thursday at Matthews’ trial.
Matthews, 56, faces charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and perjury.
On Thursday, the third day of the trial in federal court in East St. Louis, the jury heard secretly recorded conversations that alleged efforts by Matthews and others to influence the hiring of the police department’s internal affairs officer.
Prosecutors allege that the effort was intended to hire someone who would protect an auxiliary police officer with a criminal record.
The man doing the recording was Matthews’ then-deputy chief and friend, Rudy McIntosh, who was an FBI mole.
In the recordings, officials discuss an officer named Mario Fennoy whom they say agreed to pay a city council member $3,000 in exchange for assurances that he would be selected as internal affairs officer.
At one point Matthews speculates whether Fennoy can handle the task of stalling a federal investigation into the auxiliary officer.
“Can he come up to gear fast enough to do that (expletive)?” Matthews asks McIntosh.
Prosecutor Hal Goldsmith has said that officials eventually backed off the effort to install Fennoy. The council member, Eddie Jackson, returned the money, Goldsmith said.
Neither Fennoy nor Jackson could be reached for comment Thursday.
He gives refunds. Great customer service.