Oak Brook Village President Collects 4 Pensions
OAK BROOK, Ill. (WBBM) -- The village president of west suburban Oak Brook regularly decries the public pension gravy train, but now an investigation finds he and his wife are riding it.
As WBBM Newsradio 780's Regine Schlesinger reports, Oak Brook Village President John Craig often speaks out against his municipality's mounting pension obligations to its public employees.
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But a joint investigation between the Better Government Association and the Daily Herald finds that Craig and his wife collect four public pensions, totaling around $142,000 per year.
Now, the 76-year-old Craig stands to collect a fifth pension when he retires from his current job, a $63,000 post with the Illinois Secretary of State's office, the Daily Herald reported.
Craig and his wife receive pensions for the Chicago Public Schools, the River Forest School District and the Cook County Sheriff's police.
Craig defends his pensions, telling the Daily Herald, "I earned them." He chalked the controversy up to politics as he runs for reelection in April.
