George Ryan's former top aide told a jury Thursday that the former Illinois governor dipped into a campaign fund to pay country club dues and funnel thousands of dollars in gifts to his family and staff.

Ryan and lobbyist friend Larry Warner are charged with racketeering conspiracy, mail fraud and other offenses. The alleged conspiracy covers more than a decade starting in 1991 when Ryan was elected Illinois secretary of state. Both have denied wrongdoing.

According to the indictment, Ryan steered big-money state leases and contracts to Warner and other lobbyists and business associates while getting gifts and free vacations from them.

Fawell's testimony Thursday focused on the Citizens for Ryan fund, which served as the campaign financing mechanism for his two terms as secretary of state and one as governor.

Politicians may legally use campaign funds for personal purposes as long as they pay taxes on the money. Ryan is charged with failing to pay those taxes.

Fawell said Ryan used the campaign fund to pay thousands of dollars to his daughters and a son-in-law and reported the expenditures to the State Board of Elections as "consulting" fees or "campaign work." He said Ryan gave $6,000 to his mother-in-law's caregiver and used $10,000 from the fund for a daughter's wedding reception at the Kankakee Country Club.

Fawell said the campaign fund paid for lodging at the Plaza Hotel in New York for himself and his wife when Ryan and his entourage went to a Chicago Bulls-New York Knicks game in 1993. Fawell was not asked whether the fund picked up Ryan's tab at the hotel as well.

Citizens for Ryan was convicted in 2003 of racketeering along with Fawell, who is now serving a 6 1/2-year sentence. He is testifying as a prosecution witness under a deal that he hopes will save him from serving time for a pending bid-rigging case.

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