Jacob Ogles
U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor is urging Attorney General Pam Bondi to reinstate the prosecutor overseeing the case against Leo Govoni Jr.
Bondi last week dismissed Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gordon. The decision was made amid a purge of prosecutors who handled charges against individuals involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot who have since received sweeping pardons from President Donald Trump.
But Castor said the personnel decision could derail justice for those victimized by Govoni, a brewery owner found liable this year for $122 million in missing funds from a bankrupt nonprofit he ran overseeing medical trust funds for more than 2,000 people with injuries and disabilities.
Castor, a Tampa Democrat, sent a letter to Bondi asking that Gordon be reinstated.
“The victims of Govoni’s alleged fraud number in the thousands — each with painful and personal stories,” Castor wrote. “Mr. Gordon’s removal places this case, and their hope for accountability, in jeopardy. Equally alarming is the dismissal of a highly regarded Department of Justice prosecutor for purely politically vindictive reasons.”
Gordon served as senior trial counsel for the Capitol Siege Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, which prosecuted individuals for their role in the riot that sought to stop certification of former President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory over Trump.
Castor detailed some of those prosecutions, including the case against Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio for seditious conspiracy.
“His team prosecuted individuals involved in the January 6 violent insurrection, during which nearly 140 police officers were injured, suffering broken bones, burns, and blunt trauma,” Castor wrote. “Officer Brian Sicknick died from strokes after being assaulted; four others died by suicide in the aftermath.”
The federal case against Govoni has gripped Tampa Bay for years.
U.S. District Judge Roberta Colton in January allowed bankruptcy trustee Michael Goldberg to leverage Govoni’s assets to recoup funds, and issued a temporary restraining order barring Govoni from selling assets tied to the more than 100 companies he owns or that received funds from the Center for Special Needs Trust Administration, from which Govoni’s Boston Finance Group was given a $100 million loan.
“These funds — managed by nonprofits Govoni helped found — were systematically siphoned into shell companies and fraudulent investment vehicles, allegedly to support his lavish personal lifestyle,” Castor wrote.
“Victims were blindsided when their accounts were drained, leaving them without the resources they relied on for housing, therapy, medication, and basic dignity. The victims of Govoni’s alleged fraud number in the thousands — each with painful and personal stories. Mr. Gordon’s removal places this case, and their hope for accountability, in jeopardy.”
The letter cites personal stories from individuals, including Melissa Beck, a Tampa woman who said her late father was denied chemotherapy despite having $347,000 in a trust managed by a Govoni nonprofit, and Rebekah Bowman, who said she gave $800,000 in settlements to a Govoni-headed trust to cover long-term medical care only to see the fund partially emptied.
“The victims of Govoni’s alleged fraud number in the thousands — each with painful and personal stories,” Castor wrote. “Mr. Gordon’s removal places this case, and their hope for accountability, in jeopardy.”
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Janelle Irwin Taylor of Florida Politics contributed to this report.
