Joseph Weiss, brother of convicted businessman James T. Weiss, was sentenced to 60 days in prison on Wednesday for lying to the FBI and IRS about his brother’s ties to the late Chicago mobster Frank “The German” Schweihs.
The sentence was less than the four months prosecutors were seeking for Joseph Weiss, who pleaded guilty in May to one count of making false statements to federal agents.
Joseph Weiss had asked U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly for a sentence of probation. But the judge cited the seriousness of the crime.
The judge, however, said the 16 letters sent in support of him “were quite impressive ... and say a lot about Mr. Weiss’ character ... to his benefit.”
Joseph Weiss, addressing the court, said: " Your Honor, I’d like to begin by apologizing for my actions. ... I’ve accepted what is to come and accept what I did was wrong.”
He was initially charged in a two-count indictment that accused him of lying to the feds on Jan. 13, 2022, and attempting to obstruct justice. The charges were filed in August 2022 but kept under seal for more than a year.
The charges became public last October, revealing the alleged connection between his brother and Schweihs days before James Weiss was sentenced.
James Weiss, son-in-law of former Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios, is now serving a 5 ½-year prison term and not due to be released until August 2028. He was convicted of bribing then-state Rep. Luis Arroyo and trying to bribe then-state Sen. Terry Link.
Arroyo is serving a prison sentence until December 2025. Link was sentenced to probation.
Joseph Weiss admitted to lying to federal agents who questioned him while exploring mob ties to sweepstakes gambling machines, which look like video slot machines but offer “free play” options and coupons to users.
Prosecutors said Joseph Weiss lied to federal investigators when he denied his brother had ties to Schweihs, a reputed Chicago Outfit hitman who died in 2008.
Prosecutors pointed to a secretly recorded conversation from 2018 in which Joseph Weiss said James Weiss had been “partners” with Schweihs, and that James Weiss once turned to Schweihs for help with “some Russians” who had “busted up” his store.
An undated file photo provided by the U.S. Attorney’s office, Northern District of Illinois, shows alleged mob enforcer Frank “The German” Schweihs. Schweihs, 78, died Wednesday, July 23, 2008, while awaiting trial on federal charges that he took part in a racketeering conspiracy and took part in two long-unsolved mob murders.
AP/U.S. Attorney’s office
“Jimmy and Frank were good friends,” Joseph Weiss said in that recorded conversation, according to federal prosecutors. “And some Russians were muscling Jimmy, but Frank was on the run. Frank was in hiding, and Jimmy called Frank and said, ‘Hey,’ ‘cause they were partners. And Jimmy says, ‘Hey, man, these guys just busted up my f---ing store. Scared the f--- out of the girls, this and that, you know, I need your help, where the f--- are you?’”
Prosecutors’ request for a four-month sentence was in the middle of federal sentencing guidelines that called for between zero and six months of prison, and well below the federal maximum of five years in prison.
In addition to the prison sentence, Joseph Weiss was ordered to pay a $2,500 fine and complete one year of probation after he is released. He is to report to prison on Jan. 15, 2025.
Contributing: Jon Seidel
