Brett Favre to testify in Mississippi welfare case Oct. 26
The Mississippi Department of Human Services has filed notice of its intent to depose former NFL quarterback Brett Favre as part of its lawsuit seeking to recover millions of dollars in misspent welfare funds. In a court filing Monday, the agency said its lawyers were scheduled to take Favre's sworn testimony beginning Oct. 26 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. According to Front Office Sports, this would be the first Favre deposition, but those involved in the case aren't commenting because of a judge's gag order. A lawyer for Favre declined to comment and an MDHS spokesman also declined to answer questions. In a July court filing, a lawyer for Favre said his client "does not intend to invoke the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination" in connection with the case. At the heart of the dispute between MDHS and Favre is a volleyball facility built in 2019 at Favre's alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi. Favre donated his own money and helped raise funds for the facility. Text messages, which have become public in legal filings as part of the lawsuit, show he pushed state officials for money during the time his daughter was on the team.
Brett Favre will testify under oath in Mississippi welfare scandal civil case
Retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre will answer questions under oath about the misspending of federal welfare money in Mississippi, where public money intended to help some of the nation’s poorest people was used to fund pet projects he and other well-connected people supported. A notice of deposition filed Monday in Hinds County Circuit Court by attorneys for Mississippi's Department of Human Services shows Favre will give sworn testimony on Oct. 26 at a hotel in Hattiesburg. The Pro Football Hall of Famer is among more than three dozen defendants in a lawsuit the current Human Services director filed to recover some of the welfare money. Favre has denied wrongdoing, sued the state auditor who investigated the misspending for defamation and said he paid back misspent welfare funds.
Instead of going to needy families, about $5 million helped fund a vollyball arena that Favre supported at his alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, said Mississippi Auditor Shad White, whose office investigated the scandal. Favre’s daughter played volleyball at the school. Another $1.7 million went to the development of a concussion treatment drug, a project Favre supported. The deposition will be conducted by oral examination before a court reporter and may be video-recorded. A confidentiality order approved by the court would keep all of the testimony private for at least 30 days after its completion date, court records show.
What we know about Brett Favre and the Mississippi welfare scandal
How the case begin: Mississippi state auditor Shad White announced in May 2020 the Department of Human Services wasted tens of millions of dollars in federal welfare grant funds through misspending, personal use, and spending on family members, friends of staffers and grantees. The eight-month-long investigation showed that the department gave more than $98 million to two non-profits: The Mississippi Community Education Center and the Family Resource Center of North Mississippi. Of the $98 million, $94 million was “questioned,” meaning it was either definitively misspent or auditors were unable to determine if it was legally spent. Most of the money came from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Fanilies, a federal program that gives grant funding to states, which are then supposed to use the money to help low-income families with children.
One of the recipients of these funds was Favre, the Hall of Fame quarterback and Mississippi native. According to the audit, the Mississippi Community Education Center directly paid him $1.1 million in TANF funds for promotional ads and speaking appearances that the state auditor said never occurred. Favre returned $500,000 in May and repaid the remaining $600,000 in October 2021 after the state auditor issued a demand letter for it, according to the auditor’s office. But the auditor’s office maintains Favre still owes $228,000 in interest payments.
Mississippi Department of Human Services sues Brett Favre, others over welfare misspending
The Mississippi Department of Human Services on Monday sued retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre, three former pro wrestlers and several other people and businesses to try to recover millions of misspent welfare dollars that were intended to help some of the poorest people in the United States. The lawsuit says the defendants "squandered" more than $20 million in money from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families anti-poverty program. The suit was filed less than two weeks after a mother and son who ran a nonprofit group and an education company in Mississippi pleaded guilty to state criminal charges tied to the misspending. Nancy New, 69, and Zachary New, 39, agreed to testify against others in what State Auditor Shad White has called Mississippi's largest public corruption case in the past two decades.
Brett Favre to be deposed in lawsuit over use of Mississippi federal funds The former NFL quarterback and others were sued over the alleged misuse of federal welfare funds that were supposed to help low-income residents.
NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre is scheduled to be deposed in a Mississippi lawsuit that centers on allegarions of misuse of state welfar funds, according to court documents. Favre has been sued along with more than 20 other entities after Mississippi's state auditor said more than $70 million in TANF welfare funds were misused for reasons that had nothing to with needy families. Favre is scheduled to be deposed the morning of Oct. 26F, according to a filing Monday in state civil court. The Mississippi Department of Human Services last year sued him and other people or entities over what it says was a "gross misuse" of TANF — Temporary Assistance for Needy Families — funds. Favre was paid $1.1 million in state funds to make motivational speeches in 2017 and 2018, which he later repaid. State Auditor Shad White said last year that $228,000 in interest is still owed.
Mississippi Department of Human Services sues Brett Favre, others over welfare misspending
The Mississippi Department of Human Services on Monday sued retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre, three former pro wrestlers and several other people and businesses to try to recover millions of misspent welfare dollars that were intended to help some of the poorest people in the United States. The lawsuit says the defendants "squandered" more than $20 million in money from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families anti-poverty program. The suit was filed less than two weeks after a mother and son who ran a nonprofit group and an education company in Mississippi pleaded guilty to state criminal charges tied to the misspending. Nancy New, 69, and Zachary New, 39, agreed to testify against others in what State Auditor Shad White has called Mississippi's largest public corruption case in the past two decades.
Favre is one of 38 defendants who’s been accused of misusing welfare funds intended to alleviate property. No. 4’s role in the scandal is tied to Nancy New and John Davis in his home state of Mississippi. New had access to millions in welfare funds, while Davis allegedly misappropriated said funds in the first place. Federal money meant for New’sTemporary Assistance for Needy Families nonprofit instead went to retired athletes, and their community projects that didn’t necessarily have a positive impact on the less fortunate in the state.
Favre was paid over $1 million for private speaking appearances he allegedly never made. He was also gifted over $5 million for a volleyball facility at Southern Miss. Hattiesburg, Favre’s hometown and also the location of Southern Miss University — has among the highest poverty rates in the state. The former Packers QB also allegedly used state government money to help fund Prevacus, a start-up drug company specializing in concussion treatment. In texts exchanged with New and others, Favre made it clear he knew where said money was coming from, with messages such as “I believe if it’s possible she and John Davis would use federal grant money for Prevacus.” “Nancy (New) said (Christopher Freeze, the new MDHS director) ain’t our type,” Favre allegedly texted. Jake Vanlandingham, the founder of Prevacus, responded thusly: “F***. Well we may need the governor to make him our type.” Favre’s self awareness and willingness to go along with a plan that hurt the most vulnerable in his home state is deplorable, if it’s found true.
Welfare head pleaded guilty to federal charges one year ago. What’s happened since?
September 22, 2023
When the State Auditor’s Office and the Hinds County District Attorney first announced the arrests of Davis and five others in early 2020, they promised to work with their federal partners to fully investigate and pursue every person responsible for what they called the largest public embezzlement case in state history. Since then, Mississippi Today has surfaced text messages showing that Bryant planned on entering into business with the Florida-based pharmaceutical company at the center of the initial indictments. The texts show that former NFL quarterback Brett Favre briefed Bryant about the funds that welfare officials channeled into the drug startup, Prevacus, and sought the then-governor’s help securing more grants for a new volleyball stadium at University of Southern Mississippi.
Mississippi Department of Human Services sues Brett Favre, others over welfare misspending
The Mississippi Department of Human Services on Monday sued retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre, three former pro wrestlers and several other people and businesses to try to recover millions of misspent welfare dollars that were intended to help some of the poorest people in the United States. The lawsuit says the defendants "squandered" more than $20 million in money from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families anti-poverty program. The suit was filed less than two weeks after a mother and son who ran a nonprofit group and an education company in Mississippi pleaded guilty to state criminal charges tied to the misspending. Nancy New, 69, and Zachary New, 39, agreed to testify against others in what State Auditor Shad White has called Mississippi's largest public corruption case in the past two decades.
^^^I first reported this story on May 9, 2022 and its still pending^^^...I recalled that if Brett Favre payed back the money this case would be over and done with<<<Damn! The State of Mississippi probably has spent more money on the case that Favre and his friends got for the misspending of funds...If convicted, would Farve be liable for funds spent on his case?...DICUSS,
Mississippi has been dealing with serious welfare fraud issues over the last few years. Whether politicians or common folk are taking this money illegally, welfare fraud is always illegal. It goes without saying that this money is set aside for those who are desperate, and the law looks unkindly upon anyone who attempts to circumvent or take advantage of this system. But why exactly is welfare fraud so common in the Magnolia State? Why do people engage in these crimes when the consequences can be so severe? The truth is that many people might not be aware of the legal penalties of welfare fraud. Let’s cover some of these consequences in more depth.
Governor Phil Bryant is perhaps the most well-known “criminal” when it comes to welfare fraud in Mississippi, as he apparently planned to take money from a government program. This program just so happened to be geared toward helping destitute children. The funds were then redirected to Brett Favre, a former Green Bay Packers quarterback. The funds were apparently supposed to be used to build a new volleyball facility at a university attended by Favre’s daughter.
A number of people faced criminal charges and prison sentences, including well-known celebrities and athletes. John Davis, director of one of the programs, was sentenced to 90 years in prison. Favre faced civil penalties, and a head of a non-profit recently faced up to 10 years in prison. Phil Bryant may be investigated further, and charges for the governor are not out of the question.
Mississippi welfare funds wound up in a Ghanaian gold bar hoax, court filing alleges
Mississippi welfare officials for years directed federal funds intended to serve the state’s poorest residents to suspicious causes such as a university volleyball stadium, drug rehab for a former pro wrestler, a horse ranch for a former pro football player, and dozens of other things auditors have since flagged. Text messages obtained by Mississippi Today and a new court filing reveal that the state’s welfare funds may have been lost in another stunning plot: an African heiress gold bar scam. A defense attorney for another defendant recounted painstaking details of the hoax in his lengthy court filing, which alleges former Gov. Phil Bryant was behind the welfare department’s spending, including the intertwining of a drug manufacturing project with a federally-funded anti-poverty initiative. Bryant has repeatedly denied directing any of the welfare spending in question.
Jake Vanlandingham, a neuroscientist from Florida, founded a pharmaceutical startup called Prevacus in 2012 with the idea of developing a drug to treat concussions. To build up the company, he brought on former NFL quarterback Brett Favre, who himself suffered from concussions and used his platform as a famous athlete to raise awareness about the issue. Favre and Vanlandingham would later take the project to then-Gov. Bryant and then secure $2 million in welfare funds through an economic development partnership that Bryant has tried to distance himself from since arrests in early 2020. Vanlandingham tried to get Favre to secure the $25,000 through an investment in Prevacus from one of his fellow professional athletes, but they wouldn’t bite. Then Favre suggested they ask the then-Mississippi governor for help and offer him stock in the company. Bryant bit. The men met with several others for dinner in Jackson at Walker’s Drive-In in late December of 2018.
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