A former attorney is behind bars for 25 years after being convicted of embezzlement and fraud charges linked to the collapse of Washington Federal Bank, as announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, Robert M. Kowalski played a pivotal role in siphoning funds from the bank, which foundered in 2017 due to insolvency and a substantial $66 million in nonperforming loans.
At 62 years old, the Robbins, Ill., resident was held accountable by a judicial system determined to rectify his wrongs. U.S. District Chief Judge Virginia M. Kendall imposed not only the quarter-century prison term but also ordered Kowalski to cough up $7.2 million in restitution to the FDIC and a further $424,047 to the IRS in back taxes, as per the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois.
The prosecutorial team, led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle Petersen, Kristin Pinkston, Jeffrey Snell, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Netols, collaborated with multiple agencies to untangle the web of corruption and secure the hefty judgment that signals a tenure of penance for Kowalski and a caution for would-be transgressors.
