JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville businesswoman who made her name mentoring others through credit repair services and Airbnb investments was back in court on Wednesday.
A judge in a civil fraud case found Janay White misled clients and then ruled she failed to follow court orders in the case. On Wednesday, she was given one last chance to comply.
During court, White told a judge why she hasn’t paid the judgment or produced full financial records.
“I feel like I fully complied because I did everything that I could in my power to get the information,” White said.
Back in July, White was held in contempt for failing to show proof she couldn’t pay the more than $35,000 owed. A civil arrest warrant was issued, but she was never arrested because, according to court documents, police couldn’t find her.
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Chris Dempsey, the plaintiff’s attorney, wants to know: Where did the money go?
In court, he played a video White posted on social media addressing her clients.
“Ain’t nobody getting their money back. If you feel like I owe you a refund, take me to court. And we will let a judge decide,” she says in the video.
White said she put her clients’ money in a PNC bank account. But she said she did not produce any bank records from that account.
“When I read the sheet, the way I comprehended the sheet, it said to produce records for the last 12 months for my business. I never did any other accounts or got any statement since 2023, so I don’t have it,” White said.
White’s attorney said her 2020 and 2021 tax returns were turned over, and bank statements for the last 12 months.
However, her tax returns were not filed for the past three years — 2022, 2023, 2024 — which is when the plaintiff says this all happened.
“I’m gonna let her hang herself with it. She did a lot of back and forth and a lot of contradictory statements, and we have all the evidence that we need,” Plaintiff Rayvon Griffin-Bright said.
Court records suggest Janay White profited more than $1.2 million from more than 100 people who paid for investment or credit repair services.
Some of those people testified in court on Wednesday. One of them said they paid White $2,050.
“I think that the judge now sees that she needs to produce more documentation, based on what happened in there. She doesn’t have a lot of time left, and I think during that time, Rayvon’s lawyer can really poke holes into the evidence they don’t want to provide,” said Ashley “Buddy” Wilson, who invested $56,000 with White.
But White’s attorney said in court that profits were not guaranteed.
Meanwhile, Dempsey said he will not stop “until justice is served.”
News4JAX attempted to speak to White several times, but she ignored our crew.
However, her attorney Donald Dempsey said he believes White has the ability to comply with the court order.
“We should be in good shape with that, and we should be doing everything we can to comply.”
White told the court she’s working with a CPA to file missing tax returns. She has 30 days to hand over the documents.
The judge also granted a subpoena for her boyfriend’s bank accounts, where White admitted some clients may be sending money.