A Chicago man's leverage over a local strip club for cash landed him in hot water, as a federal jury found him guilty on all charges of conspiracy to commit theft and intimidations. Rommell Kellogg, 71, was convicted after demands of protection money from a suburban strip joint came to light during a trial in U.S. District Court in Chicago.
Kellogg, along with his cousin Corey Johnson, 68, shook down a Harvey Strip club, demanding regular payments in return for the club's uninterrupted operation. The fear mongered was clear: if the money didn’t flow, the city might just find a reason to shutter its doors. According to an announcement made by the U.S. Attorney's Office, this shakedown lasted from 2003 to 2018, while both men had family in the high ranks of Harvey's government.
Details emerged showing the strip club was allowed to operate despite ongoing prostitution, courtesy of the paid-off silence of Kellogg and his accomplice. Johnson played middleman, taking $3,000 every two weeks from the strip club and carrying it over to Kellogg's pocket. He pleaded guilty before the trial and is now awaiting his fate, with sentencing pending.
With each count holding the potential for up to five years in prison, Kellogg’s future now hangs in the balance, waiting on a sentencing date from U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman. Meanwhile, the clean-up of Harvey's act continues, with commendations due to a collaborative effort by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Inspector General, and the Cook County Sheriff's Office.
Assistants U.S. Attorneys Sean Franzblau and Megan DeMarco represented the government, piecing together the pattern of corruption and intimidation spanning over a decade. Such a revelation stands as a stark reminder of the entrenched systems of manipulation festering in the underbelly of local governance and the relentless pursuit of justice to bring them to light.
