Illinois quick hits: Record hotel tax revenues reported; grocer sentenced for SNAP, WIC fraud
Record hotel tax revenues reported
Illinois tourism numbers for 2024 saw an all-time high for hotel tax revenue.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity’s Office of Tourism announced the state welcomed 113 million domestic and international visitors who spent more than $48 billion.
Total hotel tax revenue came in at $367 million, a 14% increase from the previous year.
Grocer sentenced for SNAP, WIC fraud
The owner of a Chicago grocery store has been sentenced to three and a half years in federal prison for fraudulently redeeming millions of dollars in benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.
Yousef Abu Alhawa, 50, of Lockport was also ordered to pay $8.9 million in restitution to the U.S. Treasury, the Internal Revenue Service, and the state of Illinois.
Alhawa pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax charges last year.
Meth dealers sentenced
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois has announced sentences for eight methamphetamine dealers in Effingham County and indictments for three other individuals accused of drug distribution.
Prison sentences of those convicted range from 60 to 144 months.
Chance Showers And Thunderstorms
Latest News Stories
Indiana voters to decide compeititive congressional primary races Tuesday
U.S. debt tops 100% of GDP, ‘deeply troubling’ for economy, national security
Beecher High School Introduces AP Human Geography Course to Tackle Global Issues
U.S. troops in Italy, Spain hang in balance as troop reduction in Germany announced
Federal appeals court halts access to mail-order abortion drug
Labor unions back McCormick’s plan to reform federal permitting
Court-ordered tariff refunds bypass consumers who paid
Beecher Bats Explode in Dominant 16-0 Shutout Over Grant Park
Professor: Surging gas prices will have long-term effects
Illinois Quick Hits: DHS says ICE captures child sex abuser released by Illinois DOC
Wuest Drives in Seven as Beecher Pulls Away to Rout Reed-Custer 16-4
Durbin calls probe ‘sham’; state lawmaker backs transparency
