Company accuses village president of defamation
By DIANA SROKA - dsroka@nwherald.com
GILBERTS – A Woodstock construction company is suing Gilberts Village President Tom Wajda, claiming his re-election campaign literature contains libelous and defamatory statements about the company.
Merryman Excavation Inc. is seeking at least $50,000 in damages for the distribution of an allegedly libelous campaign flier based on the MasterCard “priceless” commercials.
The flier states that Wajda’s political opponent, Rick Zirk, and Merryman tried to extort $1.58 million from the village. It also states that Merryman is “bankrolling” Zirk’s campaign.
“It’s just not true,” said Zirk, who said he was employed by Merryman Aggregates, not Merryman Excavation. “Neither Merryman Aggregates nor Merryman Excavation have given me a penny.”
Zirk said he wanted to distance himself from the lawsuit because he wasn’t the one who filed it.
But Wajda said the lawsuit was an attempt to derail his re-election campaign.
“I believe this is a frivolous lawsuit by my opponent’s employer to aid in his political campaign for village president,” Wajda said.
Merryman’s attorney is Robert Hanlon, of Woodstock. Hanlon declined to comment on the lawsuit’s timing in relation to the campaign and said, “I don’t know what [Wajda’s] doing, and I don’t care. They accused my client of extorting money.”
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Kane County Court.
