Firings at Trump’s DOJ complicate case against Florida man accused of bilking kids with special needs
In progress purge Federal prosecutors from the Ministry of Justice had an impact on the criminal case against a businessman from Florida accused of children’s thieves with special needs.
The latest wave of layoffs included the prosecutor who helped direct the criminal case against Leo Govoni, whose program would have made an $ 100 million in a fund to help people with disabilities. Michael Gordon, who has also managed a series of US Capitol Riot proceedings, has been among several prosecutors drawn in recent weeks, CBS News learned. Gordon had recently resumed official tasks for the pursuit of the Govoni case in Florida.
Criticism to have Accused the Trump administration of looking for political reprisals for the cases of insurrection of the American Capitol in dismissing prosecutors, investigators and at least one administrator who worked on business. The Ministry of Justice also dismissed investigators and prosecutors who helped former special lawyer Jack Smith investigate President Trump’s mismanagement of classified files and efforts to cancel the 2020 elections.
More than 20 shots in total were confirmed by CBS News. The Ministry of Justice did not comment on layoffs.
Gordon’s risk of dismissal complicating the calendar for the Govoni affair. Representative Kathy Castor, a Florida Democrat, urges the Ministry of Justice to reverse the course and rehire Gordon,
Castor said in a press release: “The victims of the alleged fraud number of Govoni by the thousands – each with painful and personal stories. The referral of Mr. Gordon places this affair and their hope of responsibility, in danger.”
Govoni is accused of being part of a program to divert money from an organization that has been created to help manage money for people with special needs. The Ministry of Justice said earlier this year: “Defenders conspired to use customer funds with special needs as a personal piggy bank, stealing $ 100 million intended for the most vulnerable members of our company to enrich themselves.”
Amparo Perales, a mother whose son Javier needed care for blindness and severe encephalitis, said his family had lost $ 2 million in the program. Perales told CBS News that she had been “shocked” by Gordon’s dismissal.
“These victims already have difficult lives and future. A delay in the legal process is detrimental to the well-being of the victims,” said Perales.
Rebekah Bowman of Florida, whose son, Kienen Freeman, suffers from a serious crisis disorder, said that she had lost more than a million dollars of funds for her son due to the alleged program of Govoni.
“It took enough time to have it stopped. People have gone through a lot and no longer want delays,” said Bowman.
Govoni was charged with a conspiracy to commit fraud by wire and by mail, a silver laundering plot and multiple fraud chiefs. He has not yet pleaded and an indictment is scheduled for Thursday. Govoni’s lawyers asked for him to be released before the trial, noting that he has “no criminal history” and describing him as “67 years in poor physical health”. CBS News contacted his lawyer to comment.
An accountant for the Govoni company was also charged as part of the alleged conspiracy, and a non-degility plea was issued in his case.
The prosecutors said that Govoni had founded the Center for Special Needs Trust Administration in 2000 and helped manage around 200 million dollars in funds and more than 2,000 trustee with special needs.
Prosecutors allegedly alleged that Govoni used the organization’s accounts as a “founding snow fund”. Federal investigators said Govoni had used money to “buy real estate, travel via a private jet, finance a brewery, make deposits in your personal bank accounts and pay personal debts”.
In a series of letters deposited with the Federal Court of Tampa last month, a parent of a person with special needs wrote: “I want you to be able to look in the eyes of my son and the many other medically needing victims and tell them that you are going to do the right thing and keep this man behind bars where it belongs.”
Another parent wrote: “Please do not leave this horrible criminal out of prison. He is intelligent and surely has hidden money and plans to hide if he is released. All his victims have sighed in relief when we learned that he had finally been arrested. The first relief that we felt since it happened.”
Another victim wrote: “Who flies to children victims with foster family? The disabled? The most vulnerable of us? Someone who has neither conscience, compassion or mercy.”
Gordon is listed in the judicial archives as a prosecutor based in Tampa for the Ministry of Justice. Like many federal prosecutors, he brought cases related to the riots on January 6 – which was the largest criminal investigation in the history of the United States, with more than 1,500 accused. A few hours after Mr. Trump came into office in January, he pardoned almost everyone sentenced in the riot and ordered the Ministry of Justice to abandon the accusations against any remaining accused.
Gordon played a role in the pursuit of one of the best known accused of January 6, Ray Epps, who was At the center of conspiracy theories Affirming – without any evidence – he was an agitator planted by the government. EPPS pleaded guilty to disorderly driving for limited reasons and was sentenced to probation.
The Ministry of Justice refused to comment on Gordon’s dismissal and its possible impact on the proceedings of Govoni. Gordon did not comment at CBS News.
Many licensed prosecutors have been identified by a “armament working group” set up by the Trump administration to examine the policies of application of the law of the Biden era, CBS News previously reported. Other prosecutors who dealt with the affairs of January 6 resigned from their posts to the Ministry of Justice, before recent layoffs.
Greg Rosen, who was the head of the agency seat, left last month. In an interview on June 3 with CBS News, Rosen criticized the initial wave of layoffs.
“Seeing these talented prosecutors being marginalized or removed from his functions is an affront to the independence of the department,” said Rosen.
Patty Hartman, former public affairs specialist at the American prosecutor’s office in the Columbia district, was dismissed last week. Hartman, who helped distribute press releases on January 6 affairs, accused the Ministry of Justice of seeking to launch a wave of reprisals against employees who were part of the Capitol Siege case. Hartman told CBS News that she was disturbed by the series of colleagues dismissals.
“I am always very proud of everyone, even those who have been deleted because they do not deserve it,” Hartman told CBS News.
