Political figure said to owe LV casinos

A political fundraiser on trial in a corruption case in Chicago is wanted in Nevada on allegations that he rang up more than $803,000 in Strip casino debts, court documents show.

Antoin "Tony" Rezko, who was awaiting a jury decision Thursday at his fraud trial in Chicago, is sought on a felony arrest warrant issued May 20 alleging he failed to repay 10 casino loans totaling $472,275 and dating to mid-2006 at Caesars Palace and Bally's, Clark County court spokesman Michael Sommermeyer said.

Rezko, of Wilmette, Ill., also is named in a separate lawsuit alleging he owes $331,000 plus interest to the Bellagio for loans he received in February 2006.

Rezko is a real estate developer and fast-food entrepreneur who has raised thousands of dollars for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

He is charged in Chicago with using his clout with Blagojevich's administration to get a $1.5 million bribe from a contractor and to pressure kickbacks out of money management firms wanting to do business with a $40 billion state pension fund.

He has pleaded not guilty.

Joseph Duffy, a lawyer for the 52-year-old Rezko, declined comment on the Las Vegas cases.

Duffy met privately with prosecutors and U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve, who is hearing Rezko's Chicago case. St. Eve took no immediate action to revoke Rezko's bond in response to the Las Vegas warrant.

Officials with the Clark County district attorney's office did not respond to requests for comment on the Rezko cases. Harrah's Entertainment, owner of the Caesars Palace and Bally's hotel-casinos, and MGM Mirage, owner of the Bellagio, declined comment.

In a criminal complaint filed May 16 in Las Vegas Justice Court, Rezko is charged with two counts of drawing and passing a check with insufficient funds with intent to defraud.

The Clark County district attorney's office treats unpaid casino markers as bad checks, and officials usually seek restitution plus a 10 percent processing fee and penalties before filing criminal charges.

No court date was immediately set, Sommermeyer said.

Bellagio did not pursue criminal charges against Rezko. It filed a civil lawsuit on Dec. 13, 2006, and a Clark County District Court judge found Rezko in default in May 2007.

As Obama's association with Rezko became a campaign issue, the senator worked to distance himself from the fundraiser. Obama has donated to charity some $150,000 that Rezko and Rezko friends and partners donated to his campaigns.

Neither Blagojevich nor Obama are accused of wrongdoing in the case.

Another top Blagojevich campaign fundraiser and member of the governor's inner circle also faces allegations of running up a big gambling tab in Las Vegas.

Christopher Kelly wagered "millions of dollars" at Las Vegas casinos, according to a separate federal indictment charging him with impeding the Internal Revenue Service by listing company payments for gambling debts as business expenses.

Kelly has pleaded not guilty. U.S. District Court Judge Elaine Bucklo has set his trial for November.