Casinos File $267M Racketeering Lawsuit Against Blagojevich

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Three casino companies have filed a $267 million racketeering lawsuit against former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich and a prominent racetrack owner over a controversial law that requires casinos to funnel part of their revenues to struggling horse tracks.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago Friday, grew out of a federal investigation into an alleged pay-to-play scheme the former governor is accused of running.

A federal affidavit alleged Mr. Blagojevich attempted to pressure John Johnston, whose family owns and operates several tracks in the Chicago area, for a $100,000 contribution in return for the governor's signature on legislation to help the struggling horse-racing industry. The legislation requires the state's four top-earning casinos to give 3% of their gross adjusted annual revenues to the horse-racing industry.

The suit, filed by Harrah's Entertainment Inc., MGM Mirage and Penn National Gaming Corp., says Mr. Johnston and various businesses under his control donated tens of thousands of dollars to Mr. Blagojevich in return for the former governor's support for the legislation, which was approved twice by legislators. Attorneys for Mr. Blagojevich didn't return calls for comment.

According to a former FBI informant, Blago was a Chicago Mob bookmaker who paid a street tax to operate. This is during the time frame of this racketeering enterprise.