In Ed Burke trial, Burger King owner’s ‘gut feeling’ told him he should have hired Chicago alderman’s law firm

The Texas businessman might have been new to Chicago when he visited one of his Burger King restaurants here in 2017, but he’d been given a little insight into the man he’d be meeting — that Ald. Edward M. Burke was one of the city’s “most powerful” politicians.

So Shoukat Dhanani came to Chicago. He had lunch with Burke at a country club and let Burke tell him all about his property tax business. When it was over, Dhanani’s company secured a building permit and began to remodel its Burger King at 41st and Pulaski. 

All seemed well until that work was shut down late in 2017 — by Burke. Dhanani testified Tuesday that he had a “gut feeling” why the longtime City Council member intervened.

“Maybe since I had not responded about the property tax business, maybe that’s why it would have been shut down,” Dhanani told a federal jury. “I didn’t see any other reason why it would be shut down.”

Jurors also listened Tuesday as prosecutors played secretly recorded conversations between Burke and his allies that took place behind the scenes. They included a call in which Burke famously told political aide Peter Andrews that he’d been “playing nice” with Dhanani and his son but “never” heard back, allegedly about landing that property tax business.

Prosecutors called Dhanani to the witness stand — and played the secretly recorded calls — as they began showing jurors evidence of one of the schemes outlined in Burke’s 2019 indictment. It alleges that Burke tried to strongarm business out of Dhanani’s company for Burke’s private property tax law firm by blocking a driveway permit for the restaurant. 

Burke is on trial at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse along with Andrews and a third defendant, developer Charles Cui. 

The Burger King allegations formed the basis for the original attempted extortion charge filed against Burke in January 2019. But Burke’s attorneys have suggested that the Dhananis misread the situation and were confused about needing a driveway permit.

Defense attorney Joseph Duffy even seemed to point out Tuesday that Burke made the first pitch for his law firm during a “social” lunch with the Dhananis that followed a separate business meeting.

Dhanani, who is based in Texas, explained that his business began with a gas station in 1976. It now owns more than 500 Burger King restaurants. It owns about 150 in Illinois. Most of them could be found around Chicago, including the one at 41st and Pulaski.

Dhanani said Rodney Ellis, a politician in Harris County, Texas, told him he “should get to know Ald. Burke in Chicago” because “he was one of the most powerful individual politicians, after the mayor.”

The summer of 2017 was the first time Dhanani visited the Burger King he owned on Pulaski Road, Dhanani testified. That trip in June also amounted to the first of two visits he would have with Burke as Dhanani pursued a remodeling of the restaurant. 

Burke and Andrews joined Dhanani, his son and others for a short walk around the property on June 14, 2017 — a 90-degree day — to survey a problematic parking lot. Burke wore a suit and tie while others wore short sleeves and even shorts.

Burke told the Dhananis the lot was doubling as a truck stop overnight and apparently attracting crime.

The group then sat in the Burger King dining room, without eating, and discussed the remodel and the truck stop issue, Dhanani recalled. There was “no suggestion by Mr. Burke” during the meeting that Dhanani “better provide him law firm work,” Dhanani acknowledged for Duffy.

It wasn’t until they moved on to the Beverly Country Club — where the Dhananis joined Burke for a “social” lunch afterward — that Burke’s property tax firm became a significant topic of conversation. 

Andrews and the other “business people” they’d met with at the Burger King “were excluded and not invited,” Duffy noted.

Burke started the lunch meeting by gifting Dhanani a set of salt and pepper shakers with the Chicago flag that were inscribed with the names of Burke and his wife. Duffy showed Dhanani a set on the witness stand to jog his memory.

Though he couldn’t recall everything they spoke about at the country club, Dhanani remembered Burke talking about his private law firm. Dhanani also said he remembered Burke saying he had saved “some high-profile individual” millions of dollars in property taxes. 

“My understanding was that obviously he wanted to resolve the truck parking issue, and secondly maybe we should look at giving some business, property tax business to his law firm,” Dhanani said.

Dhanani also said it “might make it easier for us to get our permits.” 

The Chicago Buildings Department issued the Dhananis a building permit in June 2017, and Dhanani said he believed the remodeling work could begin. It caught Burke’s attention, though, and he got Andrews on the phone on Oct. 24, 2017. 

“They needed driveway permits and everything signed off on,” Andrews told him. 

“I don’t remember signing off on any driveway permits,” Burke replied. 

That same day, Dhanani’s son forwarded an email announcing that Burke’s office had shut down the remodeling. Dhanani had not followed up on hiring Burke’s property tax firm. Andrews made his “hard ball” comment the next day. 

Dhanani wound up meeting with Burke again, this time at the Union League Club in downtown Chicago. It was December of 2017, with the club festively decorated for the holiday season. During the meeting, Dhanani said that Burke asked why Dhanani hadn’t hired his property tax appeals firm.

“I believe I said that we’ll have to look into it — I’ll talk to the person who handles the property taxes and see what’s going on,” Dhanani said. 

But Dhanani also testified that the person who handled property tax matters for his company did not want to hire Burke’s firm. That person wrote as much in an email, saying Burke’s firm seemed “very disorganized.” Dhanani’s company never steered any work to Burke’s firm.

Burke also advised Dhanani to get more involved in Chicago politics, Dhanani said, and invited him to a fundraiser Burke was holding for a mayoral candidate.

Duffy’s cross-examination of Dhanani is expected to continue Wednesday. Shortly before testimony ended Tuesday, Duffy seemed to suggest Dhanani had been drinking at the December 2017 meeting. Dhanani said he didn’t recall. But Duffy asked whether Dhanani could think of anyone who would have had “Dewar’s on the rocks?”

“Could have been me, could have been anybody,” Dhanani said.