The remaining defendants embroiled in a kickback scheme orchestrated by former Evanston/Skokie School District 65 Superintendent Devon Horton pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges Tuesday, ending what was likely to be a high-profile criminal trial just days before it was set to begin.
Antonio Ross, 49, and Alfonzo Lewis, 49, each pleaded guilty in federal court Oct. 13 to a federal wire fraud charge, punishable by up to 20 years in prison, according to the U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District of Illinois.
Horton, 49, accepted a plea deal with prosecutors earlier this month, and changed his plea to guilty on three of the 16 felony counts of wire fraud, embezzlement and tax evasion he faced in federal court. Judge Thomas M. Durkin set Horton’s sentencing date for Jan. 5, 2027.
Samuel Ross, 47, the first defendant of the four to accept a plea deal, pleaded guilty to a wire fraud charge Sept. 29, according to federal court records. All four defendants have now changed their original pleas of not guilty, evading the trial that had been scheduled for Oct. 21.
Prosecutors allege Horton piloted the fraud scheme using his school position to steer the approval of District 65 work contracts to companies the three men owned in exchange for kickbacks and other additional payments.
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Antonio Ross obtained approximately $119,500 from work contracts with District 65 and paid Horton at least $41,900 in cash from the proceeds of the contracts, district attorneys said in a news release Tuesday.
Lewis received approximately $24,000 in work contracts from District 65, paying Horton at least $6,000 in cash kickbacks. Samuel Ross, according to prosecutors, was awarded $124,500 from the district to reportedly provide loss prevention services. He paid Horton an additional $30,000 in kickbacks.
Samuel Ross and Antonio Ross are not related.
The federal indictment against the four men also alleges the three friends lied about the contracts and made “materially false and fraudulent representations” to make it appear that Horton had no economic or personal gain from awarding them.
Prosecutors said at the time of Horton’s Oct. 5 plea agreement that his guilty plea on the three counts would reduce the length of his sentence, with an anticipated sentencing range of 87 to 108 months in prison, or about seven to nine years.
The most serious of the counts he pleaded guilty to, wire fraud, carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment.
Horton originally pleaded not guilty to all 17 of the federal charges he faced at his October 2025 arraignment hearing. Prosecutors have since dropped one of the charges, district court records confirm.
Prosecutors confirmed to Pioneer Press that after Horton’s Jan. 5 sentencing date, the district will move to dismiss the remaining counts.
Judge Durkin set Lewis’ sentencing date for Jan. 25, 2027 and Antonio Ross’ for March 10, 2027. Samuel Ross’ sentencing date has not yet been scheduled, according to the news release.
Horton is also facing an indictment in Georgia on separate charges of aggravated assault and cruelty to children following a January verbal dispute with his wife that escalated, according to DeKalb County court records.
A trial date for Horton’s Georgia indictment has not yet been set.
Horton resigned as District 65’s superintendent in 2023, before taking another superintendent position for the DeKalb County School District in DeKalb County, Georgia.