Businessman linked to the warehouse where a Chicago firefighter plunged to his death has received a string of municipal violations and a series of fines for "dangerous and unsafe conditions" at other properties he has managed or owned.
Jatin Patel has been fined thousands of dollars over the past decade for an array of code violations discovered by the city, according to court documents.
Patel, who manages the company Anilroshi that was renovating the Southeast Side brick warehouse where firefighter Daniel Capuano died Dec. 14, was cited at other properties for failure to secure a vacant building, possible rat infestations, uncut weeds and inadequate flooring, according to documents filed in Cook County Circuit Court.
Construction work at the site where Capuano died was unauthorized and outside the scope of building permits, according to the city's building department, which found the warehouse unsafe and wants it demolished. Capuano, 43, died from injuries he suffered in a fall down an open elevator shaft inside the building at 9213 S. Baltimore Ave. while he fought a small but smoky fire that made it difficult to see.
Capuano's wife filed a wrongful death suit against Anilroshi, claiming the company was negligent for having construction work done in violation of city regulations.