NEW: Mississippi's state auditor referred a case to the attorney general involving NFL's Brett Favre, wrestling's Ted DiBiase and others who received millions in allegedly illicit welfare funds to the state's attorney general. 1/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
On Oct. 12, Mississippi State Auditor sent Brett Favre a letter demanding that he pay the remaining $828,000 he owes to the state after he accepted $1.1 million in allegedly embezzled Temporary Assistance For Needy Families dollars to give speeches. 2/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Mississippi's ex-Human Services director, John Davis, allegedly helped facilitate the largest welfare fraud case in history, moving millions to a non-profit run by Nancy New, who paid Favre & others for speeches.

Davis and New have since been indicted. 3/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Neither Favre nor Ted DiBiase have been accused of criminal wrongdoing, but Auditor White demanded in October that they & the others repay all TANF funds they received by Nov. 12.

The auditor says none did so and referred the matter to AG Lynn Fitch. 4/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
The auditor’s office said recuperating the millions in welfare funds from Brett Favre, Ted DiBiase & others is now up to Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office.

But she has contracted with a private attorney to handle it. 5/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Asked why AG Fitch would hire Pigott to handle the nonpayments stemming from the DHS fraud case, the auditor's office said they did not know and that it was a question for the attorney general’s office. Fitch's office didn't answer a request for comment. 6/mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
I obtained a copy of the contract Fitch signed with MDHS and Pigott Law, P.A., to handle the case involving Favre and others who received the allegedly embezzled TANF funds.

It includes no mentions of payment mechanisms or billable rates. 7/

PDF: mississippifreepress.org/wp-content/upl… Screenshot of contractscreenshot of contractscreenshot of contract
Full disclosure: Attorney Brad Pigott, whose firm Attorney General Fitch hired to handle the MDHS payments issue, has previously donated to the Mississippi Free Press. That had no influence on this reporting. 8/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
AG Fitch has had positive ties to Favre in the past. During the early pandemic era in 2020, she said she was “excited to team up with NFL and Mississippi legend Brett Favre" to produce a video to promote public health measures. 9/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
AG Fitch is far from the only Mississippi Republican with ties to Favre. The quarterback supported the former governor, Phil Bryant, and the current governor, Tate Reeves, during his 2019 campaign.

Favre’s family donated $2,500 to Reeves’ campaign. 10/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Brett Favre represented Prevacus, a pharmaceutical company, when he brought Prevacus leaders and then-Gov. Bryant together in 2019 to discuss bringing the company to Mississippi to produce a concussion drug. 11/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Weeks after Prevacus met with Brett Favre and Gov. Bryant, prosecutors allege that the non-profit leaders who paid Favre $1.1 million in TANF dollars, Zach and Nancy New, took $2.15 million in welfare dollars and personally invested in Prevacus. 12/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Neither former Gov. Bryant, Brett Favre nor any Prevacus leaders have been accused by prosecutors of any wrongdoing in relation to the News' use of TANF funds for personal Prevacus investments. The News face multiple federal and state charges. 13/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
In May 2020, Brett Favre said he did know that the $1.1 million he received came from ill-gotten welfare funds and vowed to pay it back. But by October 2021, he had only paid back $500,000.

The state auditor demanded the rest plus interest on Oct. 12. 14/mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
After State Auditor Shad White sent a demand letter to Brett Favre for $828,000, Favre accused him of "never ... meeting with me" and said he "has instead only repeatedly run to the media."

Favre accused White of "prioritizing sensational headlines." 15/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
“These are lies, @BrettFavre. I am not going to hide how much you were paid, why you were paid, or conduct back room meetings to make this go away,” Mississippi Auditor Shad White tweeted at Favre. ... You have met with agents who work for me." 16/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
As in the past, the Mississippi Free Press reached out to Brett Favre for comment through his agent, Bus Cook, but did not receive an answer.

If we hear back from him or from AG Lynn Fitch, we will update this story. 17/
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
As a nonprofit news org, we at the Mississippi Free Press rely on support from readers like you to help continue our mission of going beyond partisanship to identify causes & solutions.

Follow us @MSFreePress and help us continue this work by giving at mfp.ms/donate. graphic with quote: "No progress is possible without a

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More from @ashtonpittman

19 Nov
Jackson Public Schools announced that six schools are going ALL VIRTUAL this morning—but NOT because of COVID.

They're going all virtual because they lack running water.

Jackson, Mississippi, folks. A capital city in the richest nation on earth.
This marks the second day in a row that these six Jackson Public Schools have had to go all-virtual.

For background on the ongoing Jackson water crisis, start here: mississippifreepress.org/10153/under-th…
Here's the second part of @NickJudin's three-part series on the Jackson water crisis (follow him). mississippifreepress.org/10682/under-th…
Read 5 tweets
18 Nov
NEW: Mississippi's state auditor referred a case to the attorney general involving NFL's Brett Favre, wrestling's Ted DiBiase and others who received millions in allegedly illicit welfare funds.
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
On Oct. 12, Mississippi State Auditor Shad White sent Brett Favre a letter demanding he pay the remaining $828,000 he owes to the state after he accepted $1.1 million in allegedly embezzled Temporary Assistance For Needy Families dollars to give speeches.
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Mississippi's ex-Human Services director, John Davis, allegedly helped facilitate the largest welfare fraud case in history. He's accused of moving millions in TANF funds to a non-profit run by Nancy New, who paid Favre and others millions for speeches.
mississippifreepress.org/18254/mississi…
Read 17 tweets
16 Nov
NEW: Attorney General Lynn Fitch today asked a federal judge to block President Biden's vaccine mandate for workers in hospitals, nursing homes, hospices and other LTCs.

They have already "gone above and beyond the call of duty," the Mississippi AG said.
mississippifreepress.org/18170/ag-fitch…
Mississippi AG Lynn Fitch: "Now, for no other reason than the President’s desire to check the box on universal vaccination, these heroes are being forced to choose between vaccination and their jobs."

MS has the highest COVID-19 death rate nationwide.
mississippifreepress.org/18170/ag-fitch…
On Friday, a Republican-appointed panel on the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked another Biden vaccine mandate for companies with 100 employees or more.

The Biden admin says it will "likely cost dozens or even hundreds of lives per day.”
mississippifreepress.org/18170/ag-fitch…
Read 6 tweets
6 Nov
THREAD: 16-year-old Bryan Loftin sat in a wheelchair next to his mom and watched as Gov. Tate Reeves made his way around the restaurant.

The governor greeted every table in the room—except the one where the boy in the wheelchair sat with his mom. •1
mississippifreepress.org/17896/as-gov-r…
Christine Loftin was on a mission: She was there to confront Gov. Reeves for stalling the legislation to legalize medical marijuana.

Reeves once dismissed supporters of medical marijuana as "stoners." But for Bryan, it's a matter of life-or-death. •2 mississippifreepress.org/17896/as-gov-r…
Undeterred by Gov. Reeves' apparent slight, Christine Loftin and Bryan approached him from behind, making clear they wanted to speak with him.

But the governor kept his back turned and began walking away. •3
mississippifreepress.org/17896/as-gov-r…
Read 35 tweets
5 Nov
NEW: When a federal court redrew Mississippi's congressional maps to make it comply with the Voting Rights Act, plaintiffs say, it inadvertently helped kill direct democracy—and a medical marijuana law voters approved in 2020.

They're asking for a remedy.
mississippifreepress.org/17927/mississi…
"Left to a state legislature unable to adopt a constitutionally compliant redistricting plan for the last thirty years …, the initiative petition rights of the people of Mississippi have been sideswiped and killed,” the motion says.
mississippifreepress.org/17927/mississi…
On Nov. 3, 2020, about two-thirds of Mississippi voters approved Initiative 65. If their wishes had been fulfilled, patients would have been able to begin obtaining medical marijuana to treat various illnesses starting in August.
mississippifreepress.org/17927/mississi…
Read 15 tweets
5 Nov
“Joe Biden’s vaccine mandates are one of the most shocking attacks on personal liberty in this country during my lifetime,” says Gov. Tate Reeves, who in 2015 presided over the passage of a bill to incarcerate tuberculosis patients who refuse treatment.
mississippifreepress.org/17791/reeves-m…
With Tate Reeves as Mississippi Senate president, the chamber unanimously passed the 2015 bill to incarcerate tuberculosis patients who refuse treatment.

But it never became law. It died in the Mississippi House on a 40-70 vote.
mississippifreepress.org/17791/reeves-m…
You can help us grow our non-profit newsroom by following us @MSFreePress and by giving a one-time or recurring donation at the link.

Venmo and Paypal options are also available at the link.
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Read 4 tweets

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