Cook County man threatened Harvey strip club owners, demanded payments or would interfere with operations

HARVEY, Ill. - A Cook County man was convicted Monday of obtaining money by threat from a strip club in a Chicago suburb for about 15 years.

A jury convicted Rommell Kellogg, 71, of Harvey, on five counts against him, including conspiracy to commit theft and intimidation and causing the use of facilities in interstate commerce to promote theft and intimidation.

Evidence presented at trial revealed that Kellogg and a co-conspirator, 68-year-old Corey Johnson of Dolton, are cousins who have relatives who served in high-ranking positions in the Harvey government.

From 2003 to 2018, prosecutors say that Kellogg and Johnson conspired to regularly demand and collect payments from a Harvey strip club based on threats that the city would potentially interfere with the club's operations if the payments were not made.

In exchange for the payments, the business could continue to operate, even though Kellogg and Johnson knew acts of prostitution were occurring onsite. 

In the conspiracy, Johnson served as a bagman, receiving bi-weekly payments of $3,000 from the business and delivering the money to Kellogg.

Johnson pleaded guilty to a theft charge before trial and is awaiting sentencing. 

The jury returned Kellogg's verdicts after a week-long trial. Each count of conviction is punishable by up to five years in federal prison.