Gotcha: Operation Tow Scam - I

Federal Bureau of Investigation
September 4, 2009

Listen to Gotcha: Operation Tow Scam - I - MP3 - 974KB - 0:59

Mr. Schiff: It’s called Operation Tow Scam, and Chicago is the place.

Mr. Rice: "The investigation targeted independent tow truck drivers in the city of Chicago who were offering bribes to Chicago police officers to make them the preferred tow operators in a certain area of the city.”

Mr. Schiff: FBI Special Agent Ross Rice in Chicago . He says this illegal activity of having specific tow trucks going to accident scenes was going on for awhile when the FBI was contacted.

Mr. Rice: "We approached some of the tow truck drivers, explained the facts of life, if you will, to them, and some of them began cooperating with us.”

Mr. Schiff: This investigation, Operation Tow Scam, went on for some three years. Rice says one cop was on the take, getting thousands of dollars .

Mr. Rice: "He took between $600 and $800 a week from a tow operator for about a two-year period, so it amounted to a fairly substantial amount of money over a period of time.”

Mr. Schiff: The cop in question was on the Chicago force for more than 20 years. He pleaded guilty in court to being involved in the extortion scheme. I’m Neal Schiff of the Bureau, and that’s the FBI’s Closed Case of the Week.”