The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) carried out a joint operation at the Duval Teachers United building on Atlantic Boulevard in Jacksonville’s San Marco community on Wednesday.
Agents were present from early morning through late afternoon, during which time they procured a number of boxes containing business materials, computer equipment, and paperwork.
According to reports from The Florida Times-Union, a box containing credit card statements was among the evidence collected and labeled as such.
The Florida Times-Union has learned that the investigation possibly involves misappropriation of funds. Regional FBI spokeswoman Amanda Videll confirmed that a “court-authorized search warrant” was executed but declined to release any further information, stating, “Because the investigation is ongoing, details about the search are not being released at this time. I’m baffled by it, I was astonished,” said one anonymous DTU member.”I was shocked because they usually represent us really well, we don’t know. We will find out.” The Duval Teachers United organization has released an official statement addressing the shock of the federal investigation. They affirmed their commitment to upholding their mission of supporting members and students, as well as cooperating with authorities in assessing the facts.
Though there is yet no information on who is accused of criminal activity or what the nature of the investigation is, DTU recognizes that transparency and accountability are expected from its members and public alike.
Republican Representative Dean Black has called for the union to provide a full disclosure of the union’s funds and details of any on-going investigations in response to the raid.
He emphasized that transparency is necessary in order for the public to have faith in their elected officials, according to Florida Politics.
“Like all Duval County residents, I was horrified to see that the FBI raided the office of the Duval County Teachers Union. According to media reports, the FBI, in conjunction with the IRS, has an ongoing investigation involving alleged ‘misappropriation of union funds,’” said Black.
“What is even more troubling is the silence from union leadership since this raid. To restore the trust of taxpayers and dues paying teachers, the Duval County Teachers Union must immediately release a complete accounting for how all union funds are being spent, come clean about what specifically this investigation entails and make public all pertinent documents pertaining to the FBI and IRS investigation,” he added.
Governor Ron DeSantis remarked that he was not privy to the details of the federal operation and emphasized that it was beyond the state’s jurisdiction.
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