ROCKFORD – Ousted Dixon comptroller Rita Crundwell will plead guilty this morning to federal wire fraud in connection with a case in which she is accused of bilking the city of millions of dollars over two decades, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a news release.

Crundwell, 59, will appear at 9 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Philip Reinhard. She faces up to 20 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine.

"It's good news because pleading guilty will allow the Marshal Service to liquidate all the sales and the city can start seeing restitution," Dixon Mayor Jim Burke said Tuesday. "We can be happy it's not dragging on and on."