Kennealy & O´Callaghan In The News

Blagojevich taps ex-IRS man to oversee campaign fund

By: Robert Herguth March 18, 2009

(Crain's) — A former Internal Revenue Service special agent has been hired to help oversee ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich's campaign fund.

Bob Kennealy, a private detective and former IRS agent, was named treasurer, replacing Stephen Caboor, who resigned after more than four years on the job. Mr. Kennealy used to work organized crime cases, including one that sent reputed mob boss Ernest Rocco Infelice to prison in the early 1990s.

Mr. Blagojevich was charged with corruption in December, accused of, among other things, trying to auction President Barack Obama's former U.S. Senate seat and to use a $1.8-billion road project to lure campaign cash from a concrete company official.

Mr. Kennealy brings experience and credibility to the operation and will work with prosecutors, says Tony Jacob, an attorney for the campaign committee.

A campaign treasurer typically is responsible for reporting and filing financial disclosures — a potentially important position in the wake of a federal investigation into Mr. Blagojevich's fundraising activities. The feds haven't frozen Mr. Blagojevich's campaign fund, which totaled $2.7 million at year end, but prosecutors are monitoring expenditures. Campaign funds could be used for the former governor's legal expenses.

If the two sides can agree on spending, perhaps an expensive and protracted court battle over the future of the fund can be avoided, according to one person familiar with the situation. Mr. Caboor, a certified public accountant in Lombard, resigned from the Friends of Blagojevich campaign fund in February, two months after the then-governor was charged with wide-ranging corruption.

Mr. Caboor said he has not been subpoenaed or contacted by investigators. "I was just the accountant who did the tax return. . . .I probably shouldn't have been in there to begin with," Mr. Caboor said, declining to comment further. His firm had contributed more than $10,000 to Mr. Blagojevich since 2000.

Pair Supermodel, Good-hearted Judge

Chicago Tribune | February 14, 1995

By Janan Hanna, Bill Crawford and John O'Brien

By the numbers: Here's proof that when employee misconduct is suspected, it's a good idea to hire investigators skilled in accounting. When its books showed a substantial cash shortage, a suburban manufacturing company turned for help to Kennealy and O'Callaghan. The private investigation firm, with accounting expertise, interviewed employees and reviewed security videotapes. Nothing.

But when Robert Kennealy and David O'Callaghan examined the company's books, the problem was clear-a bookkeeping error.

"We were able to resolve the puzzle in a couple of days," said Kennealy, a former IRS organized crime investigator. Kennealy and O'Callaghan, a veteran Chicago police sergeant, combine the talents of federal and local investigators.

DeLand Delco Oil president accused of defrauding banks indicted on federal charges

April 18, 2011 | By Jeff Weiner, Orlando Sentinel

A DeLand man accused of defrauding several banks and a private finance company has been indicted on federal charges, officials said Monday.

In a recently unsealed 33-count indictment, Stephen B. Deluca is charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.

Federal investigators said Deluca, president and sole shareholder of a company called Delco Oil, faked invoices and inventory records in order to secure millions of dollars in loans from financial institutions.

Deluca is also accused of "check kiting" — essentially, using worthless checks drawn on one account to cover worthless checks drawn on another.

Deluca, 53, faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison on each count. If convicted, he would also be forced to forfeit $18 million, which investigators said are the proceeds of his suspected criminal activity.

Owner of DeLand oil distributor Stephen DeLuca faces federal fraud indictment

Staff Report | April 18, 2011

A DeLand man is charged with 33 federal counts of fraud for making false claims about the value of his company, Delco Oil, to secure millions of dollars in credit, according to the U.S. attorney.

Stephen B. DeLuca, 53, DeLand is charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. Each count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison, according to a statement released today by United States Attorney Robert E. O'Neill.

The indictment also notifies DeLuca that the United States intends to forfeit $18 million traceable to the crimes.

According to the indictment, DeLuca, the president and sole shareholder of Delco Oil, engaged in a scheme to defraud several banks and a private finance company, CapitalSource, by falsely inflating the amount and value of Delco's inventory and accounts receivable, which were used to secure revolving lines of credit.

The alleged scheme, which was investigated by the FBI, resulted in a loss of $18 million to CapitalSource, O'Neill said.

Delco, a distributor of oil and petroleum products, filed for bankruptcy amid lawsuits in 2006 brought by CapitalSource.