Impeached Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's chief fundraiser worked for the California investment company that's at the center of the grand jury investigation that sidetracked New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson's political career, Bloomberg.com reported Friday.

That fundraiser, Springfield, Ill., lobbyist Milan Petrovic, also contributed about $20,000 to Richardson political campaigns, according to campaign finance records. The New York-based financial publication said Petrovic clients and other associates also contributed more than $50,000 to Richardson's campaign for re-election as governor.

Petrovic's clients included the company of Mike Stratton, who worked as a CDR lobbyist as well as a top adviser in Richardson's presidential campaign, according to Bloomberg.

A grand jury subpoena served on Richardson's office last year demanded all correspondence between Richardson's office and Stratton regarding CDR and its officials.

Petrovic raised almost $2 million for Blagojevich's 2006 re-election campaign, Bloomberg reported. In 2004 and 2005, according to state e-mails obtained by Bloomberg, Petrovic introduced CDR to Illinois budget and debt officials.

In 2004 the New Mexico Finance Authority voted to award CDR $1.5 million in bond and interest-rate swap work to finance a state transportation project. Around that time, CDR president David Rubin made contributions totaling $110,000 to political committees associated with Richardson.

According to records in the online database of The Institute of Money in State Politics, Petrovic made three contributions to Richardson's re-election. He gave two checks, one for $11,500 and one for $5,000, in October 2004. He also contributed another $1,000 to the gubernatorial campaign in April 2005 and $2,300 to Richardson's presidential race in 2007, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. (Petrovic also gave Republican Rudy Giuliani $1,000 later in 2007.)

Richardson spokesman Gilbert Gallegos declined to comment Friday on the Petrovic/CDR connection. Richardson and his office have consistently denied any wrongdoing in CDR's selection.

CDR spokesman Allan Ripp couldn't be reached for comment. Bloomberg on Friday quoted him as saying CDR had "no relationship" with Petrovic and that the firm "has done only minimal work for the city of Chicago and none with the state of Illinois."

Blagojevich was impeached — and now faces criminal charges — over allegations that he tried to sell various appointments, including the U.S. Senate seat left vacant when Barack Obama was elected president.

Richardson's campaign committee in 2006 gave $20,000 to Blagojevich's campaign.

Although federal investigators have been looking into the Richardson administration's relationship with CDR since at least August 2008, in early January Richardson announced that he was withdrawing as Obama's nominee for secretary of Commerce, saying he was afraid the investigation would drag on and that it would be an issue at his confirmation hearings.

The grand jury, which apparently has looked at Richardson administration officials including former chief of staff Dave Contarino and former deputy chief of staff David Harris as well as Stratton, has not returned any indictments.

Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com.