Former Milwaukee Ald. Willie Wade, shown speaking in Wade, the former Milwaukee alderman turned jobs agency leader, said he could secure votes from certain Common Council members in support of the strip club's license application.
District Court in May The documents, which at one point became public before again being sealed, paint an odd case involving accusations of secret meetings in parking lots, a wire-wearing informant, emojis and other code words sent by text, and accusations of bribery β all allegedly part of an effort to open a strip club in downtown Milwaukee.
The business owner who served as an informant in the case is identified as "Cooperating Individual A" in the grand jury indictment released last week. The informant reportedly wore a wire at their meeting, during which Wade allegedly said he was confident he could persuade Ald. Khalif Rainey to vote in favor of the license.
Wade then allegedly asked him "how much the license was worth. Khalif Rainey. They met again two separate times on Sunday, April 16, β the day before the Licenses Committee vote β at two different parking lots in the city, the affidavit says. The informant allegedly again requested to meet with Rainey, and Wade again refused. Wade allegedly said he would text Rainey with a "code" once he got the money, adding that the informant should send him a text with a "thumbs up emoji" if Rainey voted to approve the license.
The deal allegedly fell apart at one point, but Wade called back as the informant was driving away and agreed, saying he would collect the rest of the cash after the full Common Council vote on the matter.
