Cyber Ninjas, the company that tried to review the 2020 election results, will file for bankruptcy and start a new company in its place.
Founder Doug Logan revealed the plan through text messages obtained by The Associated Press. He says he was initially unable to sell the business due to “too much negativity surrounding the name,” and bankruptcy would be the last option. By selling all of Cyber Ninjas’ assets, Logan claims he will be able to pay off the debts needed to start a new business.
“If Cyber Ninjas goes bankrupt, I either have to find a job with someone else,” Logan wrote in an email to The Associated Press, “or start from scratch with a new company. is the path I have chosen to go. “
Cyber Ninjas were best known for helping recount the ballots in Arizona’s Maricopa County in the 2020 presidential election. The company’s report on their findings certified that current President Joe Biden won the elections were fair, but the machines used showed some irregularities. Former President Donald Trump and his allies, who have perpetuated false and unproven allegations of electoral fraud, have used this report to further their allegations. Because of this and the heightened tensions between him and the Republican-majority Arizona Senate, he expressed uncertainty about the future despite the new company on the horizon.
“I am not naive enough to think for a second that the Senate is supporting me,” he wrote. “The actions chosen through it all speak a little louder than words, and make it clear that the Senate has no intention of honoring what it is committed to. The choice was made to try. what can be legally obtained rather than what is ethical or fair with. “
Photo by Bill Clark-Pool / Getty Images
His lawyer says Logan cannot execute a court order to release public documents because the company has no money, even as Trump allies have raised millions of dollars for the unprecedented partisan election scrutiny .
Logan and Republican Senate Speaker Karen Fann disagree over more than $ 100,000 of the $ 150,000 the Senate agreed to pay Cyber Ninjas, which was held back.
The text messages were sent from Logan to Fann on Monday and released to The Associated Press on Friday in response to a request for public recording. Chris Kleminich, the Senate Public Records attorney, said Fann did not respond to Logan.
Logan told the AP that his dispute with Fann stems from the overdue payment of $ 100,000 and the Senate’s refusal to pay his legal fees in connection with the public records dispute, which he says is required in under their contract.
“I have no intention of throwing you or throwing anyone else under the bus, but I think the time has also come for me to stop completely covering up the decisions I haven’t made.” , he continued to Fann.
Cyber Ninjas has fought two lawsuits filed by The Arizona Republic newspaper and watch group American Oversight, arguing that it is not subject to the Public Records Act because it is about a private company. The judges in both cases and the state appeals court disagreed.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge John Hannah said Thursday he would fine Cyber Ninjas $ 50,000 a day starting Friday if he did not release public documents. He warned he would extend the fines to “individuals responsible for enforcing this order”, not just the company, if necessary.
“The court will not accept the assertion that Cyber Ninjas is an empty shell and that no one is responsible for ensuring that it complies with it,” Hannah said.
Logan told the AP he plans to comply with the court order, but wants more clarity from the judge and Senate money to cover the costs, which he has. declared underestimated by the court.
“When the court’s decisions are no longer ambiguous and they are within our capacity to enforce, it will happen,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Photo by Courtney Pedroza / Getty Images
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