Ex-trash titan Chuck Rizzo gets 66 months in federal prison
(WJBK) - Former trash titan Chuck Rizzo was sentenced to 66 months in prison in federal court Monday.
Rizzo is a central figure in the wide-ranging federal investigation of the public corruption that started in Macomb County. Rizzo already pleaded guilty to bribery and fraud charge. His federal sentencing of 5.5 years in prison came down Monday afternoon.
He was sentenced to 60 months to commit bribery, and six months for wire fraud. Rizzo must also pay a $250,000 fine and be supervised two years after his release.
Rizzo, who is being held, has requested he be sent to a minimum security prison in Pensacola, Florida.
In his plea agreement Rizzo said he bribed local officials including Clinton Township Trustee Dean Reynolds and Macomb Township Trustee Clifford Frietas to support contracts for Rizzo Environmental Services.
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In working with the feds, he agreed to wear a wire and helped federal investigators arrest corrupt public officials he bribed to support giving government contracts to his garbage hauling business.
But in February when out on bond awaiting his sentencing, he had his bond revoked by a judge for witness tampering.
The feds said Rizzo contacted and intimidated a government witness last December after swearing in court that he would not contact any government witnesses.
Investigators said that a government witness told them Rizzo continued to commit crimes even after he started working with the feds to bust officials who voted to give them contracts worth millions of dollars.
Back in October of 2018, Rizzo had decided to fight the charges against him, before ultimately decided to plead guilty to conspiracy bribery and fraud charges.
Chuck Rizzo Sentencing Memo for Macomb Co. corruption scandal by David Komer on Scribd