Bridgeport

The now-defunct Washington Federal Bank for Savings at 2869 S. Archer Ave.

Crooked Bridgeport bank used these people’s CDs to fuel embezzlement scheme — ‘We were all victims’

By Tim Novak

Crystal McHenry shows off “get what you get” tattoos she got from Brown Brothers Tattoo in Humboldt Park.

These Chicago tattoo parlors let chance (and a gumball machine) choose your design

By Mary Norkol

Chicago police officers stand outside Guaranteed Rate Field at night.

City Hall

Chicago police commander working side security gig during unsolved White Sox shooting is demoted

There was concern John Spellman might have prioritized the interests of the White Sox over the police department in stalling a chief’s request to pause the game, the Sun-Times has learned.

By Tom Schuba

Bridgeport bank failure fallout sees owner of home where bank CEO died found guilty of embezzling $6 million

By Tim Novak

Crime

Police search for man who tried to lure kids into car in Bridgeport

The kids were playing on the sidewalk about 8 a.m. Sunday in the 3100 block of South Halsted Street when a gray car pulled up and a man tried to get them into the car.

By Cindy Hernandez

Crime

Top cop defends decision to keep playing White Sox game after two fans hit by gunfire

Interim Police Supt. Fred Waller did tell reporters Monday that investigators have ‘almost completely dispelled’ a theory that one or more bullets were fired from outside the stadium, wounding two women.

By Tom Schuba and Allison Novelo

Crime

White Sox fans left with questions about shooting ahead of Saturday’s game: ‘No one’s really given any answers’

“The fact that nothing has been said is a bit concerning,” Sox fan Madelyn Spagnola said outside the stadium Saturday. “People should feel safe when they go to a ballpark. [But] I’ll risk it for the bobblehead.”

By Violet Miller

Fanáticos de los Chicago White Sox abandonan el Guaranteed Rate Field mientras la policía responde a un tiroteo que tuvo lugar en el estadio.

Crime

2 shot during White Sox game at Guaranteed Rate Field, video shows; unclear if bullets came from outside stadium

Stadium footage showed confusion in the left-field bleachers after the shooting, which happened around the fourth inning. Security cleared people out of the section — but the game was completed despite the active crime scene.

By Kade Heather

Cherylle Booker (from left), executive director Nancy Gomez and Janno Juguilon inside the ceramic studio space at Project Onward, a nonprofit for artists with disabilities.

‘It never feels like you can’t do something’: How Project Onward’s artists with disabilities strengthen each other

By Christina Nafziger

Carrie Stegniller Turtle’s Bar and Grill Bridgeport Chicago

White Sox

White Sox moving from Bridgeport would be ‘devastating,’ some businesses say

“Bridgeport and the White Sox just go together, they always did,” Carrie Stegniller, a manager at Turtle’s Bar and Grill said. But not everyone in the South Side neighborhood was as concerned about the potential move.

By Mohammad Samra

William Mahon walks out of court Monday after pleading guilty.

Bridgeport bank failure fallout: Ex-city official, second man plead guilty in collapse of Washington Federal Bank for Savings

By Tim Novak

Janice Weston entering to the Dirksen Federal Courthouse for her guilty plea and sentencing Wednesday. Weston was senior vice president of Washington Federal Bank for Savings in Bridgeport and the sister of John Gembara, who was the bank’s chief executive officer. Their family ran the bank for three generations.

Bridgeport bank failure fallout: Dead CEO’s sister pleads guilty in collapse of Washington Federal Bank for Savings

By Tim Novak

Kelly Harmon, a special education teacher at McClellan Elementary School in Bridgeport. Deteriorating lead paint was found in her classrooms twice. It took CPS months to remove it both times, records show.

The Watchdogs

CPS says it fixed every lead paint hazard it found this year, but work at some schools hasn’t been completed, records show

Chicago Public Schools records also show long delays at some schools between when lead paint hazards were identified and removed.

By Nereida Moreno | WBEZ

Washington Federal Bank investigation

Woman gets 3 years for helping brother hide more than $300,000 after collapse of Bridgeport bank

Jan Kowalski pleaded guilty last year to concealing assets from a bankruptcy trustee. She helped her brother, Robert Kowalski, hide more than $357,000 while representing him as an attorney in bankruptcy court.

By Jon Seidel and Tim Novak

Crime

White Sox fan who had a wild ride in a car’s sunroof looks on the bright side

Chuck Janczy, 64, said he felt ‘lucky’ to get stuck in the sunroof of a car after surviving a hit-and-run crash: ‘Worse things could have happened.’

By Allison Novelo

News

Sox park hit-and-run victims got help from stranger with emergency medical training

‘I was about 7 feet away when I saw the first man get hit and then sent through the sunroof,’ Artist Eastling said. The driver, Condelarious Garcia, faces multiple felony charges.

By Allison Novelo

Arthur J. Williams Jr., a counterfeiter-turned-artist, paints in his studio in Bridgeport. He learned to paint in prison. Now, money is a motif in his works.

Bridgeport counterfeiter turned painter still finds money much to his liking

By Stefano Esposito

Washington Federal Bank for Savings, 2869 S. Archer Ave., before it was shut down in December 2017 for “unsafe or unsound practices.”

Washington Federal Bank investigation

Ex-Washington Federal bank employee cuts deal with feds, expected to testify

The failure of Washington Federal Bank for Savings has led to criminal charges against 16 people. Among them: former Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson, who was convicted last year of lying to regulators and filing false income-tax returns.

By Jon Seidel

Washington Federal Bank for Savings, 2869 S. Archer Ave., before it was shut down in December 2017 for “unsafe or unsound practices” days after CEO John F. Gembara was found dead at a bank customer’s home in what authorities called a suicide.

Washington Federal Bank investigation

Washington Federal Bank for Savings collapse sees another former employee charged

Brian Fong is cooperating with prosecutors. Fifteen bank officials, workers and borrowers have been charged, and a Daley family member was convicted of cheating on his taxes in a related case.

By Tim Novak

Fans gather outside Guaranteed Rate Field for the White Sox home opener Monday, April 3, 2023 against the San Francisco Giants.

News

Rain holds off as White Sox fans gather for home opener

A festive move among tailgaters at the ballpark gave way to a more somber reality inside Guaranteed Rate Field where the Sox lost to the San Francisco Giants 12-3.

By Catherine Odom

Chicago Police instructor Anthony Ciaravino (left); Ald. Nicole Lee (11th) (right) earlier this month.

Elections

Bridgeport runoff: One more round for Daleys in 11th Ward race?

With former Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson’s conviction, it may seem that the Daley family’s grip on the 11th Ward is slipping. But despite boundary and demographic changes in the ward, the Daleys and their allies are still exerting influence.

By Matthew Hendrickson

Robert M. Kowalski walking in to the Dirksen Federal Building on March 4.

The Watchdogs

Bridgeport bank failure case verdict: Robert M. Kowalski guilty of all charges

He was a longtime friend, customer and business partner of John F. Gembara, the Washington Federal Bank for Savings’ CEO authorities say oversaw a massive embezzlement scheme.

By Tim Novak

Patrick Daley Thompson walks in to the Dirksen Federal Courthouse at the start of his trial in 2022. “One of the requirements is: You had to work. I worked as a custodian,” Thompson testified Wednesday.

The Watchdogs

Patrick Daley Thompson on prison life: ‘It was horrible, absolutely horrible’

The former Chicago City Council member from Bridgeport offered a glimpse Wednesday of his life behind bars as he fought to keep from having his license to practice law suspended for three years.

By Robert Herguth and Tim Novak

Elections

Who is Paul Vallas, Chicago mayoral runoff candidate?

Paul Vallas, former Chicago Public Schools CEO, has secured a spot in the April 4 Chicago mayoral runoff.

By Sun-Times staff

A teen boy was fatally shot Aug. 14, 2022, in the Golden Gate neighborhood.

Crime

Man fatally shot during fight in Bridgeport

Terry Lofton, 50, was fighting with a 76-year-old man in the 3100 block of South May Street . The older man, who has a FOID card, shot the other man in the head, police said.

By Sun-Times Wire

John F. Gembara, who was chief executive officer, president and chief shareholder of Washington Federal Bank for Savings in Bridgeport.

Dead Bridgeport banker routinely hid bad loans from federal regulators, trial shows

By Tim Novak

A box of strawberry paczki at Bridgeport Bakery.

News

Thousands of paczki going out the door this week at Bridgeport Bakery

The beloved neighborhood bakery has been through a lot in the past three years.

By Courtney Kueppers | WBEZ

Robert M. Kowalski enters the Dirksen Federal Courthouse wearing a zipped up jacket over a flannel shirt.

Washington Federal Bank investigation

Dead CEO of failed Bridgeport bank in the spotlight as embezzlement trial begins

John F. Gembara, the late boss of Washington Federal Bank for Savings, schemed with attorney Robert M. Kowalski, prosecutors told jurors Tuesday. Representing himself, Kowalski blamed Gembara.

By Tim Novak

Embezzlement trial could spill new secrets about Bridgeport bank linked to Patrick Daley Thompson

By Jon Seidel and Tim Novak

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Chicago

Man’s body pulled from Chicago River in Bridgeport

The Chicago Police Marine Unit responded to a call about a body floating in the water in the 2800 block of South Eleanor Street.

By Sun-Times Wire