Court records reveal how much families lost in case of embattled Pinellas special needs trust company

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Families impacted by a Pinellas County special needs trust fund company lost a wide-ranging amount of money: from pocket change to millions of dollars, according to court records.

According to an online list of more than 1,500 creditors' claims, some clients of the Center for Special Needs Trust Administration saw about $7 drained from their accounts, while others lost thousands, hundreds of thousands and up to $2.2 million.

In its bankruptcy filing, the Center accuses its founder, Leo Govoni, of taking $100 million in unapproved loans during an 11-year period that he never paid back. The Center filed for bankruptcy last month.

Govoni, a longtime businessman in Pinellas who has owned dozens of companies, allegedly used some of his businesses to run the Center's finances, accounting and IT department, helping him to hide the loans.

Some of the Center's clients, meanwhile, continue to come forward, demanding answers.

"It leaves me speechless. It makes my heart sad. It makes me feel bad for them, and their families," said Pamela Smith, who said she entrusted about $350,000 with the Center and recently received notice that she might be impacted by the bankruptcy. She received the money from an injury lawsuit settlement stemming from a car accident with a semi-truck in Duval County. "It says they help you, give you quality of life. No. They take your life away from you and your money."

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Since FOX 13 broke this story last month, several of those families have reached out, including Carol Mulholland, who was appointed to a creditors committee, tasked with following the bankruptcy case and representing all the families potentially impacted by the situation.

"This is the most vulnerable group of people you could possibly take from. There's strict legislation in place about exploiting vulnerable people," Mulholland said earlier this month. "My daughter lives with us and relies on us for every single thing, every day of her life and some of the beneficiaries of special needs trust don't have families or anyone else to support them. So what happens to them?"

A federal judge, meanwhile, recently approved the appointing of a chapter-11 trustee to protect the interests of the Center's clients. The move would effectively force the company's board of directors out of the picture.

A spokesperson for the Center wanted to make clear the Center has not moved from its current location in St. Petersburg, despite another news outlet's incorrect report last week.

The Florida Attorney General's office recently confirmed it's aware of the situation and told FOX 13, "the appropriate investigative agencies have been notified. We cannot comment further at this time." Several families have also contacted the FBI.

While that investigation continues, several families have joined a class action lawsuit against Govoni, his company, Boston Finance Group, along with some of his business partners.

Govoni has not responded to many of our recent attempts to contact him, including one on Monday. In a previous statement he wrote, "I dispute the allegations and characterizations in the filings of the Center as to the mishandling of any of the Center’s funds. I look forward to resolving this issue through the bankruptcy process or otherwise."

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