Embattled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) fired an employee who warned her about mishandling federal funds, according to a report.
washington free beacon on wednesday report In 2021, less than a year after taking office, Mr. Willis met with an employee in his office named Amanda Timpson, who told him that a top aide to Mr. Willis’s campaign would be targeting federal funds for youth gangs. He was told he had been demoted for trying to misuse the subsidy. Prevention efforts.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis appears during a hearing at the Fulton County Courthouse on November 21, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Dennis Byron Poole/Getty Images)
Mr. Timpson told Mr. Willis that his aide Michael Cuffee, who is also Mr. Tillis’s direct manager, had stolen a portion of a $488,000 federal grant earmarked for the creation of the Youth Empowerment and Gang Prevention Center as “stolen property.” He said he was planning to use the money to pay for “. He also obtained an audio recording of the conversation, the newspaper said.
Timpson reportedly told Willis during a meeting on November 19, 2021: “He wanted to do things with subsidies that were impossible, and I told him, ‘You can’t do that. I kept saying, ‘I can’t do it,”’ he said.
She went on to say, “He told everyone…’I’m going to buy a MacBook, I’m going to buy souvenirs, I’m going to use it for travel.'” I said, “I can’t do that, this is very important.” This is a special subsidy. ”
“I respect your assessment,” Willis reportedly replied, adding: “I’m not saying your assessment is wrong.” Mr Willis reportedly apologized to Mr Timpson and said Mr Cuffey’s administration had been a “failure”.
But less than two months later, Willis “abruptly” fired Timpson and was escorted out of the building by security, Timpson said. free beacon.
Watch the video:
Mr. Timpson filed a whistleblower complaint the following year, alleging unfair dismissal. Willis’ office issued a statement saying Timpson was a “holdover from the previous administration” who was fired because he “did not meet the new administration’s standards.”
Despite Timpson telling the outlet that she planned to use the money for other things, Cuffee insisted the purchase was part of Willis’ vision. he said.
Mr. Cuffee told the Washington Free Beacon he denied the allegations and said he was proposing to draw the money for the purchase from a separate fund. He accused Timpson of “money extortion.”
“This is just a moneymaker for Timpson,” Cuffy said. “She can do what she needs to do.” The paper said Cuffee left Willis’ office the following month, in December 2021, for “personal” reasons.
However, according to reports, Timpson had concerns about Willis even before the November 2021 meeting.
Timpson, who previously served as gang prevention and intervention director for the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office, announced that in July 2021, several out-of-state students will be enrolled in the Willis Junior District Attorney Program, a federally funded program for mid-career and post-secondary educators. program). Atlanta and Fulton County public school students.
Mr Timpson said he raised the issue with Mr Willis on July 26, 2021, but Mr Willis did not want to hear about it.
Special Counsel Nathan Wade in Atlanta, September 6, 2023 (Jason Getz/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
“I didn’t want the scandal to be associated with her and I wanted her to know about it. She immediately cut me off mid-sentence and demoted me from youth guidance director to file clerk. ” Timpson said.
Timpson recorded the following conversation in which Willis alerted him to Cuffee’s alleged financial misconduct.
“I knew I was dealing with the whole office,” she said. “If I don’t have solid evidence for what I’m saying, everyone will ignore me.”
The Free Beacon confirmed that the grant money in question was never intended to be spent on computers or other items, and the Fulton County Youth Empowerment and Gang Prevention Center was never opened.
Mr. Willis fired Mr. Timpson on January 14, 2022, and escorted him out of the building.
“On my best days, I’m 4’11,” Timpson told the magazine. “Who is so scared of me that I had to have seven armed agents escort me out of the building? I have never been warned about any negative behavior that would make anyone feel threatened by me.” .”
In August 2022, she filed a whistleblower complaint in Fulton County Superior Court seeking damages for lost wages. The incident is currently under investigation, according to the report.
County spending records show Willis’ office used $1,245 in federal funds from a gang prevention grant to buy items from Dell in November 2022 after firing Timpson. the paper reported.
According to other Fulton County records reviewed by free beacon, Willis funneled federal grants to buy computers and fund travel on other occasions.
In 2020, her office used $13,000 of a $2 million grant from the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative to purchase computers to help eliminate the Atlanta Police Department’s backlog of rape kits. and spent an additional $27,000 on airfare, hotels, and rental cars.
Mr. Willis’ office also used grants from the Georgia Innocence Project, the Matthew Shepard Jr. and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Program, and federal funds allocated under the Violence Against Women Act to develop computers. It is reported that he purchased.
Mr. Timpson has filed a libel and defamation lawsuit against Mr. Willis, and plans to file a similar suit against the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office in the near future, according to the report.
Timpson alleges that Willis hired his alleged lover, Nathan Wade, to handle the election interference case involving former President Donald Trump, even though he lacked the prosecutorial experience necessary for the case. This was done in the face of allegations that he had paid excessive salaries. Additionally, there are claims and bank records showing that Wade, who filed for divorce the day after Willis hired him, took Willis on foreign trips, and that Georgia taxpayers, who pay Wade’s salary, have There are growing concerns that he may be funding the holidays. There is a prospect that Willis is personally benefiting from the pending case, which could lead to his withdrawal from the case.
Timpson said her case and Wade’s allegations are very similar and show a pattern with Willis.
“My case and Nathan Wade’s case are very similar when you break it down point by point,” Timpson said. “Ethical violations, abuse of power, and misuse of county, state, and federal funds.”
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