Knox County has filed a lawsuit against a former officeholder before while he awaits trial on charges of stealing from government coffers, reports the News Sentinel.
The Knox County Law Director’s Office filed a lawsuit Friday against former Knox County Trustee Mike Lowe and two ex-staffers, Delbert Morgan and Ray Mubarak. The Chancery Court lawsuit also names as defendants two firms operated by Mubarak — Tennessee Residential Services and Tennessee Real Estate Services.
The False Claims Act lawsuit alleges Lowe, Morgan and Mubarak filed false invoices with the county for services not rendered or money not owed. In Lowe’s case, the lawsuit alleges he paid Morgan wages Morgan, already convicted as a phantom employee of the trustee’s office under Lowe, did not earn, paid Mubarak for work not performed and scheming with Mubarak to overbill the county for title services.
The lawsuit tracks the allegations filed against the trio by a Knox County grand jury.
Law Director Richard “Bud” Armstrong said Monday he filed the lawsuit before Lowe and Mubarak have been tried because the time limit on such an action was set to expire. He made no apologies for the legal action, noting if the county did not act under the False Claims Act, a citizen could under the whistleblower section of the law.
“I took an oath to uphold the Knox County constitution, the Tennessee Constitution and the U.S. Constitution and officeholders are not exempt,” Armstrong said.
If a False Claims Act is successful, the county can collect treble damages. If a citizen filed, that person would get a substantial cut of any damages awarded. Knox County prosecutors Bill Bright and John Gill have alleged Lowe, Morgan and Mubarak robbed the county of nearly $1 million.
The trial is scheduled in April.