Crime & Safety
FL Nonprofit Leaders Stole Over $100M From Special Needs Victims: DOJ
Prosecutors said about $100 million in money stolen from a nonprofit was used to purchase real estate, a private jet and a brewery.
ST. PETERSBURG, FL — The founder of a St. Petersburg-based nonprofit organization and its accountant are facing numerous federal charges after prosecutors said they stole more than $100 million from people with special needs and disabilities.
Leo Joseph Govoni, 67, of Clearwater, and John Leo Witeck, 60, of Tampa, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, three counts of mail fraud, six counts of wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with the scheme, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida said.
Govoni is also charged separately with one count of bank fraud, one count of illegal monetary transaction and one count of making a false bankruptcy declaration.
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According to prosecutors, Govoni co-founded the Center for Special Needs Trust Administration, a nonprofit that managed money for people with disabilities and other special needs, including those who received settlements, court awards and other payments.
CSNT grew to be one of the largest administrators of special needs trusts in the country, with beneficiaries located in Florida and nationwide, according to court documents. As of February 2024, CSNT managed more than 2,100 special needs trusts containing about $200 million in assets.
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According to an indictment, from June 2009 through May 2025, Govoni and Witeck solicited, stole and misappropriated CSNT client-beneficiary funds, which they treated as a slush fund to enrich themselves and others. Prosecutors said Govoni used stolen money to purchase real estate, travel in a private jet, fund a brewery, make deposits in his personal bank account and pay debts.
Court documents said the pair concealed what they were doing through "complex financial transactions and deceit," including sending account statements with false balances to victims and their families.
In February 2024, CSNT filed for bankruptcy and disclosed that more than $100 million in client-beneficiary funds was missing from its trust accounts.
Govoni was also charged with bank fraud related to a $3 million mortgage refinance loan and the alleged laundering of $205,054 of the fraud proceeds to pay off a home equity line of credit on his residence.
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