William Anthony Degironemo, Reputed Chicago Outfit Operative, Pleads Guilty to Mail Fraud

A co-defendant of a man reputed to be a top operative for the Chicago Outfit pleaded guilty Thursday in the rigging of contracts to supply forklifts for two trade shows at McCormick Place.

William Anthony Degironemo, 67, an Inverness resident who operated MidStates Equipment Rental and Sales, pleaded guilty to mail fraud in federal court.

As part of the agreement, prosecutors will move to dismiss a charge of making a false statement to a federal agency and will recommend that Degironemo be sentenced to up to 21 months in prison. Sentencing was scheduled for Feb. 16.

Degironemo and Rudy Fratto, a Darien resident and reputed mob lieutenant nicknamed "the Chin," were charged in 2010 after they were accused of using confidential information about competitors' bids to undercut the competition and win the contracts.

A consultant who owed $350,000 to organized-crime figures in Cleveland allegedly gave the information to Fratto in exchange for Fratto's offer to intervene with the Ohio mobsters, according to court documents.

Fratto's trial is scheduled to begin next month.