Tony Rezko's billionaire buddy
Tycoon who invested nearly $170 million in 62 acres in the South Loop -- land indicted fund-raiser had been trying to develop -- has been named by prosecution
On a spring day in 2004, Nadhmi Auchi, one of the world's richest men, flew in to Midway Airport on a private jet. Met by a welcoming party that included Lt. Gov. Pat Quinn (there at the request of the Blagojevich administration) and businessman Tony Rezko, Auchi was brought to a downtown hotel where he was the guest of honor at a reception hosted by Blagojevich.
The Iraqi-born billionaire -- who lives in London -- had come to Chicago on business. He would go on to invest nearly $170 million in a prime piece of vacant land in the South Loop -- 62 acres along the Chicago River that Rezko wanted to develop.
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Now, Auchi is surfacing in Rezko's corruption case, set to go to trial Monday. Auchi is mentioned by prosecutors in the court filing that got Rezko's bail revoked and landed him in jail.
Rezko was indicted in October 2006 in a scheme to shake down firms seeking state pension business to enrich himself and Blagojevich's campaign fund. He got $3.5 million from Auchi's company in April 2007 but never told a judge about it, raising concerns that Rezko, a native of Syria, might flee the country.
Auchi wasn't accused of wrongdoing regarding Rezko. But he had faced legal troubles in Europe, prosecutors noted, having been "convicted several years ago in France on fraud charges" and sentenced to 15 months in prison, "but the sentence was suspended as long as Auchi committed no new crimes."
They raised the possibility that, even though Auchi's Luxembourg-based General Mediterranean Holding has taken control of the valuable South Loop property from Rezko, Auchi might be barred from entering the United States. "In November 2005, after Auchi was unable to enter the United States, Rezko directly appealed to the State Department to permit Auchi to enter the United States and, it appears, asked certain Illinois government officials to do the same," prosecutors wrote.
So how was Auchi not allowed in the United States in November 2005 but able to come here in 2004 -- despite his criminal conviction in France in 2003?
Auchi's London-based lawyer, Alasdair Pepper, wouldn't answer that. State Department and Homeland Security officials said they couldn't comment.
But Pepper did say Auchi maintains his innocence and is appealing the conviction "through applying to the European Court of Human Rights." Also, he said by e-mail that Auchi didn't authorize "Mr. Rezko to appeal to the State Department or to contact 'Illinois government officials' to help him obtain a visa."
Prosecutors haven't said which "Illinois government officials" Rezko contacted. Rezko was a longtime fund-raiser for Blagojevich and for Sen. Barack Obama, but aides to both said Rezko never reached out to them about Auchi.
Blagojevich did pose for pictures with Auchi at the April 2004 reception. Obama, now the leading Democratic presidential contender, wasn't there.
"The senator doesn't recall ever meeting Auchi," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.
Said Pepper: "My client has no recollection of meeting Sen. Obama."
Auchi has sought to distance himself from Rezko -- but still plans to develop the 62 acres at Roosevelt and Clark. Asked about the project, Pepper referred questions to a Feb. 12 story posted on the Web site Newsmax.com.
"As negative information about Rezko came to light last year, GMH moved to buy out Rezko's interest" in the project, Newsmax reported. "In July 2007, Rezko sold the majority of his interest."
General Mediterranean has invested nearly $170 million in the property and has "80 percent control of the holding company that owns the land," the report said.
It described Auchi as a political opponent of Saddam Hussein whose brother was murdered by the Iraqi dictator. Describing Auchi's star power in London, it wrote: "Many liken Auchi's fame in Britain and the Middle East to that of Donald Trump in the U.S."
Auchi, who left Iraq in 1980, has been honored "for his charitable work and business success" by Queen Elizabeth II, according to Newsmax.
Forbes ranked Auchi No. 279 on its 2007 list of the world's billionaires. The magazine described him as a "onetime go-between for major oil companies and state-owned oil fields in the Gulf" who settled in Britain after fleeing Iraq. After being convicted of fraud charges involving the French oil company Elf, Forbes reported, he "started a lawsuit in early 2007 against France's Elf, accusing its former directors of fraud and of entangling his name in their criminal acts."
Chris Fusco and Tim Novak
