Investigator says ‘fraudulent’ gift to Florida’s only public historically Black university is void

A record multi-million dollar gift to Florida’s only public historically Black university has been void for months, an independent investigator said Thursday, as a third-party report determined school officials failed to vet a “fraudulent” contribution and that the donor’s self-valuation of his fledgling hemp company was “baseless.” Little-known entrepreneur Gregory Gerami’s donation of more than $237 million was “invalidated” ten days after its big reveal at Florida A&M University’s graduation ceremony because of procedural missteps, investigator Michael McLaughlin told trustees. Gerami violated his equity management account’s terms by improperly transferring 15 million stock shares in the first place, according to an Aug. 5 report by the law office of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, PC. Gerami declined to provide AP with any documents supporting this conclusion, saying, “You don’t need the full report.” He also denied that he improperly transferred company shares to the FAMU Foundation. Ignored warning signs alleged by the report include: — An April 12 message from financial services company Raymond James revoking its previous verification of Gerami’s assets.