Florida AG Uthmeier's Grand Jury Report Sealed

0:00It's April 8th. This is Tampa Bay News Today, powered by AI. I'm Corey with the story. Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeyer dodged questions this week about whether he asked a judge to seal a Grand jury report on the Hope Florida scandal. During a heated news conference in Miami, he insisted he's not a target, not indicted, and nobody did anything wrong. The Grand jury in Tallahassee is probing how the DeSantis administration shifted $10 million from a Medicaid settlement to fund political fights. That cash came from a $67 million deal with contractor Centine over prescription drug overbilling. Most of it flowed through the Hope Florida Foundation, tied to the First Ladies Charity work, straight to a political committee run by Uthmeyer back when he was the governor's chief of staff. The goal was to battle ballot initiatives in 2024. Reporters push back hard, asking if he opposed releasing the report. Uthmeyer called it political nonsense and shut them down.

1:00State rep Alex Andrade, a Republican from Pensacola, first blew the whistle last year with text showing Uthmeyer urging a non-profit leader to grab, 5 million from the pot, which then funneled most to his committee. Andrade handed his findings to local prosecutors and the FBI after committee hearings exposed the moves. The other half went to a chamber of commerce group that passed cash along too. Ron Chowzen, the non-profit exec involved, was spotted at the courthouse as the grand jury kicked off. This report might stay locked up for months, blowing right past Uthmeyer's first election as AG this November, leaving folks wondering what really went down with that taxpayer money.