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 John Bills, 52, was charged with one count of bribery in U.S.
District Court for allegedly steering city contracts for 384 cameras
and other services to Redflex Traffic Systems, the U.S. Department
of Justice in Chicago said in a statement.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Bills' attorney, Nishay Sanan,
said the veteran former city official was being used as a scapegoat
by prosecutors who sought to implicate others in the scheme.
Redflex said it has been cooperating with authorities.
 "Last year, we publicly released the findings of our internal
investigation into the conduct of several former employees and
announced new leadership, new policies and a line between our past
and today's Redflex," it said in a statement.
Bills managed the red light camera program until he retired in 2011
after working for the city for 32 years, according to prosecutors.
An unnamed individual at Reflex was said to have funneled more than
$643,000 in cash to Bills between 2006 and 2011, according to the
complaint, which said he spent the money for travel, a luxury car
and to pay off loans.
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Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel called for an investigation of Redflex in
2012 before the city cut ties with the company, according to the
Tribune.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien; Editing by Jon Herskovitz, Tom Brown
and Clarence Fernandez)
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