Seminole County, Fla. (WFLA) – Lifelong neurological disorders, 23-year-old has repeatedly denied necessary medical services.
Her family then learned about Leo Govoni and the $100 million fraud case against him. They believe that others may be involved too.
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Ja’mari Evans has been denied access to her special needs over and over again. Twenty years later, she said it all made sense.
Evans is a survivor.
“The experience was traumatic,” Evans said. “I’m 23. I can’t drive.”
Ja’mari was born in a car accident at the age of three, and suffered serious injuries to her.
“The accident caused every bone in her face, her jaw torn her liver,” said Ja’mari’s mother, Ratasha Jones.
Her mother said a secret settlement had reached and, based on the advice of her lawyer, the money was placed in trust to be kept at the Special Needs Trust Management Centre in St. Petersburg.
“They explained to me that it would be regulated by the state,” Jones said.
She was also told that it would be an account with interest that would allow her daughter to still receive the government benefits she needed. The single mother thought the centre would keep Jamari’s money safe, but after requesting after braces, procedures and medication requests, it was all denied.
Until 2016, when Ja’mari got approval from the centre for dental appointments prior to a critical operation, and to this day, she still didn’t have one.
“They were told the trust wasn’t receiving payment,” Jones said.
Jones noticed that her daughter’s trust money is deducted in large quantities every year. She questioned the Center, her attorneys, and even the Orange County Court Clerk.
“It’s heartbreaking and now it makes sense that we didn’t get approved for anything,” Jones said. “And it’s crazy to learn about the story today.”
After encountering an online report, she realized that Jamali was also a victim, and her trust had been eliminated.
“That’s one of the things you’ve always heard on TV.
Their home was devastated during Hurricane Ian, and after the move, they say they have never received notice that the Center filed for bankruptcy in February 2024 or that in June the Center founder Leo Gobony and his accountant John Vitic were charged with stealing $100 million from disabled people and using those funds to live a luxurious life.
“They weren’t the ones who took it,” Jones said. “She was taken away more than just money.”
“I feel like I’m accessing these funds appropriately,” Ja’mari said. “I feel my life would have been a little different.”
Jones believes Gobony and Veck could not act alone. She seeks accountability not only for her daughter, but for her entire family, as well as her hundreds of families whose lives have been turned upside down.
“We’re just ordinary people. There’s probably no justice for us,” Jones said. “A lawyer is a lawyer and everyone who will benefit from this has to sleep at night.”
The Goboni remains behind the bar without bond. Witeck has since formed a bond. Their next criminal hearing is scheduled for December 11th.
