Crime & Law
Former ComEd Board Appointee Testifies About Michael Madigan’s Role in Securing His Seat
(Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News)
When Juan Ochoa, a prominent Latino businessman and former head of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, sought an appointment to Commonwealth Edison’s board of directors, he didn’t send his resume to company HR or hear updates from the utility giant — instead he was kept up to date by Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Ochoa testified Tuesday at the former speaker’s racketeering trial that he was informed about the status of his board appointment by Madigan and his longtime confidant Michael McClain, rather than any ComEd officials.
Madigan, 82, and McClain, 77, are charged with racketeering, bribery and wire fraud. They have each pleaded not guilty.
Ochoa’s testimony is at the center of the largest corruption scheme Madigan is accused of orchestrating — namely that ComEd brought on several of the speaker’s allies in exchange for his support on critical energy legislation in Springfield.
McClain was previously convicted — along with ex-ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore and two others — in last year’s “ComEd Four” trial of conspiring to bribe Madigan.
Ochoa, who took the witness stand inside the downtown Dirksen Federal Building Tuesday afternoon, explained his professional background and how he came to be a candidate for the ComEd board seat, mirroring his testimony from the “ComEd Four” trial last year.
That seat became available in 2017 after Jesse Ruiz resigned from the board in order to join the race to become Illinois’ attorney general. Ochoa — the former CEO of McPier who currently heads the Miramar International Group — said he and many members of the Latino community viewed that as a “Latino seat” and believed another Latino should be chosen to replace Ruiz.
Ochoa testified that after receiving Madigan’s backing for the seat, he sent his resume to the speaker’s office — rather than directly to ComEd — in November 2017 and learned in April 2018 from Madigan that he was going to be appointed to the board.
But as the board was undergoing an overhaul at that time, Ochoa was told he likely wouldn’t be officially seated until after the general election in November. Months later in early 2019, after no official appointment had been announced, Ochoa called Madigan’s office to discuss another matter and got a prompt call back — from McClain.
McClain informed Ochoa that his appointment had been finalized and he’d been getting official word shortly.
“I wanted to keep any angst down,” McClain said in a Feb. 19, 2019, phone call that was secretly recorded by federal investigators and played in court.
Ochoa on Tuesday testified he was surprised to hear from McClain.
“I was not aware that he knew anything about my interest in the board,” he said.
Prosecutors at trial have described McClain as Madigan’s “mouthpiece” who carried messages for the speaker to disguise his involvement in “corrupt activity.”
After his first board meeting in May 2019, Ochoa spoke with McClain on the phone again and asked him to extend his gratitude to Madigan. McClain responded it took a “bigger team” to get him on the board and that he should “whisper into Anne Pramaggiore’s ear because she was very helpful.”
Ochoa testified his board term was one year and he did not seek to be re-appointed after that term expired.
In another call from May 2018 played for jurors Tuesday, McClain told Madigan there had been some “pushback” from some ComEd officials against Ochoa’s board candidacy, and if they wanted to pull their support, Pramaggiore had said she could find another position for him that would pay similar to the $78,000 he’d get from a board salary.
When Madigan heard what board members are paid, he joked “maybe I’ll take the appointment” before stating “I would suggest that we continue to support Juan Ochoa.”
McClain also spoke on the phone with Pramaggiore about Ochoa, telling her in May 2018 that Madigan “would appreciate it if you’d keep pressing.” Pramaggiore responded that she would “keep pressing” to secure his appointment.
On cross examination, Ochoa testified that he didn’t find it unusual that he was asked to send his resume to Madigan’s office, as he had sought the speaker’s recommendation for the board seat.
He also added that Madigan at no point guaranteed that he’d get the board seat and that he didn’t think it was odd he was dealing with an intermediary like McClain rather than directly with the speaker.
“That’s not uncommon or unusual is it?” McClain’s attorney Patrick Cotter asked.
“No,” Ochoa replied.
Among the schemes alleged in the complaint against them, Madigan and McClain are accused of arranging subcontractor jobs for several of the former speaker’s associates with ComEd, which paid out approximately $1.3 million to those individuals even as they did little or no work.
Their trial, which began in early October, is expected to run into January 2025.
