I am specifically asking about the method in this example:
>Exchange of funds through a legitimate business: A firm controlled by a public official pays a large sum of money to an unrelated corporation in return for fictitious invoices for alleged consulting fees. That corporation in turn makes checks payable to one of its corporate officers who then cash the checks with the aid of a bank official. The cash is returned to the first corporation’s officers who include the public official.
So what exactly is happening in this example? I am confused who is being bribed and who is doing the bribing (i.e. who the money is coming from and who the money is going to). It seems like the public official is just bribing himself as the large sum of money comes from his firm only for it to end up back in his pocket. This makes zero sense to me.
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In: 2
At a glance that seems more like an embezzlement or tax evasion scheme to me, which frankly is probably how it’s meant to work.
Alderman A has $15,000 tied up in his company, which he doesn’t want to pay taxes on. Karen comes to the Alderman to ask for a zoning variance for her family business. Alderman A pays Karen’s company $15,000 for “consulting”, Karen’s company issues a corporate check to Karen’s husband Chad, who then gives Alderman A a bag containing $15,000 cash. Alderman A waves his magic wand and yada yada yada, zoning variance is granted.
Source: spend a lot of time in Chicago.
>Exchange of funds through a legitimate business:
>A firm controlled by a public official pays a large sum of money to an unrelated corporation in return for fictitious invoices for alleged consulting fees.
Step one: the money comes from the firm’s budget, let’s say it’s taxpayer money. The public official wants to put that money into their own pocket, but that’s super illegal. So, they pay for “consulting services.” This is the justification for where that money went when the auditor comes knocking.
>That corporation in turn makes checks payable to one of its corporate officers who then cash the checks with the aid of a bank official.
Step two: the 2nd corporation passes the money (minus their cut) to one of their employees. This is *their* justification for where that money went when the auditor comes knocking.
>The cash is returned to the first corporation’s officers who include the public official.
Step 3: the guy who got the check and cashed it passes the money (minus his cut) back to the corrupt official under the table. This is the part that’s kept secret.
The scenario above isn’t really bribery, it’s more like embezzlement. I believe the term is “graft”.
As others have said, the listed example is more like embezzlement than bribery.
For bribery, it would go more like this:
Alice wants to build something in a certain part of the city. Doing so requires an exception to the zoning codes in the city. Bob is a city worker who, for whatever reason, can grant those exceptions. Bob’s wife, Carol, owns a business that offers coaching services on working through city bureaucracy.
Alice goes to Bob to ask for an exception. Bob declines to grant the exception, and in passing remarks that there were errors with her proposal that, with a little work, she might be able to overcome and win approval on an appeal. He gives her a list of businesses that might be able to help her with that, which coincidentally includes Carol’s business.
Reading between the lines, Alice hires Carol for her “services.” After finalizing payment, Alice re-submits her proposal and with the “advice” granted by Carol’s business, it’s approved. Of course, the fact that Alice’s payment is pocketed by Carol (Bob’s wife) is just a complete coincidence.
In reality they’d probably use a few more layers to mask the relationship, but that’s the basic idea: Pass the funds through a business as if they’re a legitimate invoice so that a cursory inspection won’t reveal them for the bribe that they are.
The person being bribed is the public official; they’re being bribed not by the money but by the illegal access to it. They’re being enabled to embezzle; that’s the bribe.
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