04-04-2025
Federal judge questions Pinellas County businessman Leo Govoni on stand
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — 8 On Your Side continues to push for answers from Pinellas County businessman Leo Govoni after he answered questions on the stand in federal court Friday morning.
A federal judge found Govoni liable for $120 million in missing money tied to his now bankrupt St. Petersburg non-profit. It was money that was meant to help disabled people and their families. The search is heating up for that missing money to see if any of it could be returned to the families that lost everything.
Leo Govoni was in court on Friday on the orders of a Federal Judge as the attorneys representing those families are pressed to know where all that money went. While Govoni avoided Investigative Reporter Brittany Muller's questions outside the courthouse in downtown Tampa, he was forced to offer some answers on the stand.
'He's not answering any questions,' said Attorney Paul Sisco. Muller said 'Sure, but I am going to ask Mr. Govoni: where's the money?'Sisco wasn't wrong. Govoni did not utter a word as 8 On Your Side tried to get answers for the people who trusted him to safeguard their money, only to see it all disappear.'Will any of the victims ever recover any of the money?' Muller asked Govoni. GVictims like Elena Capasso.'This is the people that you stole from, kids like this it's awful, awful,' said Louis Capasso, Elena's money came from a settlement, which was being managed at Govoni's non-profit: The Center for Special Needs Trust Administration. But Elena's father soon realized his daughter's money had vanished! 'I really do want my money back,' said Elena. On Friday, for the first time, Govoni himself showed up in Federal Bankruptcy Court going before Judge Roberta found Govoni liable for more than $120 million dollar in missing money in January. On Friday, the Judge tacked on more than $150,000 to her judgement for associated attorney costs and fees for those working to recover the missing money.
Those attorneys and Judge Colton have been requesting that Govoni produce documents and records of from his dozens of businesses, but they said so far, Govoni has not complied.'The judge just said that you will be held in contempt if you don't produce the documents, where are the documents?' Muller asked Govoni.
While Govoni didn't respond, he did answer some of the questions from the judge and attorneys when he took the stand, while representing himself.
Attorney Steven Wirth is the representing Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Trustee, who is managing the Center's affairs and assets while working to recover the missing money.
While Govoni was on the stand, Wirth questioned him about 50 entities one by one. Govoni said one LLC formerly owned an airplane, one company made Bloody Mary mix, and another performed forest management services in New England.
Wirth asked about Govoni's ownership, assets, and functions of those entities. But to several questions, including when asked about tax records, he pled the fifth to avoid potentially incriminating himself.
Last week, Govoni was kicked out of his Clearwater businesses located at 12707 49th St. N. Clearwater, including Big Storm Brewing. The Judge had previously granted officers to take control of Govoni's businesses — everything from managing the books to changing the locks on the doors.
Govoni gave the Judge a letter stating that the records are inside his business that he's no longer able to enter, but attorneys for those who are missing money have argued previously that Govoni had plenty of time to provide those documents before and was only ordered out of his business after he failed to turn them over.
According to a Pinellas Park Police report, Govoni violated court orders when he entered the business on March 26th and attempted to remove personal items even though he has been barred from doing so. The report shows Govoni told officers that 'he was unaware and had not yet been served the order.' As this case plays out in court, Elena is left in limbo. 'He didn't even care the kids that he was stealing from,' said Capasso. 'That's what makes it so bad.'
It's important to note, cameras are not allowed inside the federal courtroom.
While Leo Govoni remains the focus of an FBI investigation, so far, he has not been charged with a crime.
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