Scott Rothstein

Hut, Hut! Jindal Chomped Up $10K From Accused Fraudster Before Big UF-LSU Game

Justin Elliott | November 18, 2009, 3:18PM

Florida's Jeffrey Demps leaves LSU defenders in the dust, 10/11/08; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Scott Rothstein (inset).

Just hours before the University of Florida Gators administered a 51-21 trouncing of LSU last year, Gov. Bobby Jindal was rubbing elbows with well-heeled Florida supporters at a fundraiser-cum-tailgate party held in a private home north of Gainesville.

One of the co-chairs of the October 2008 reception was none other than Scott Rothstein, then a prominent Fort Lauderdale attorney, now accused of a fraud worth $1 billion.

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Charlie Crist

Mo Money Mo Problems: Rothstein Is Latest Crist Fundraiser Under Cloud

Justin Elliott | November 4, 2009, 6:42PM

Gov. Charlie Crist (R-FL), Scott Rothstein, Alan Mendelsohn, and Harry Sargeant

Something is rotten in the state of Florida?

With the accusations this week that Scott Rothstein, fast-living Fort Lauderdale attorney and friend and donor to Gov. Charlie Crist, orchestrated a massive fraud out of his law firm, there are now three Crist moneymen caught up in alleged criminal or extremely shady activity.

Crist, whose career has been fueled by his skill as a fundraiser, finds himself entangled with the trio of scandals just as his U.S. Senate primary campaign against conservative Marco Rubio is attracting national attention. And there's already talk down in Florida that the Crist-linked scandals may become a factor in the primary contest.

So what's it all about? Let's go to the tape.

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Scott Rothstein

Roger Stone: I Hired PI To Investigate Biz Partner And Accused Fraudster Scott Rothstein

Justin Elliott | November 3, 2009, 4:41PM

Roger Stone and Scott Rothstein (inset)

Roger Stone told TPMmuckraker in an interview today that he retained a private investigator last year to scrutinize the activities of Scott Rothstein, Stone's onetime business partner who is now being accused of a $100 million fraud involving his south Florida law firm. And, Stone added, he broke with Rothstein earlier this year after Rothstein tried to censor criticism of his friend Gov. Charlie Crist on The Stone Zone, for which Rothstein's law firm was providing web hosting.

Stone, reached in Ohio where he is working election day, explained that about a year ago Rothstein's spending -- "on luxury cars, real estate, watches, charitable and political donations" -- had gotten so out of control that Stone hired private investigator Adam Mangino.

"He came back with two pieces of advice: 'I don't know where the money is coming from, but I do know the money is not his,'" Stone says. "It was at that point that I asked Rothstein to dissolve the company."

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Scott Rothstein

Prominent And Politically Connected Florida Attorney Accused In $100M Fraud Scheme

Justin Elliott | November 3, 2009, 12:29PM

Scott Rothstein

In a case already being compared to the Bernie Madoff affair, a lawsuit filed Monday in Broward County accuses south Florida "super attorney" Scott Rothstein of bilking investors in a scheme run out of the powerful firm Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, which now says it can't make payroll.

An attorney for one investor told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the amount of money missing could be over $100 million, though it's not clear where it went.

Rothstein and his wife are jet-setters who live in a 6-plus million dollar Fort Lauderdale home and were known for driving a veritable fleet of expensive sports cars and showering their favorite charities with big donations. A flamboyant character who was once pictured on billboards with Miami Dolphins great Dan Marino, Rothstein grew up in a lower-middle class family in the Bronx. He's now out of town and possibly out of the country -- no one knows where exactly -- and the Feds have reportedly shown up at his law firm offices.

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