U.S. Department of Justice drops complaint against Carolina Amesty

The U.S. Department of Justice on Aug. 6 dismissed its complaint against former Florida state Rep. Carolina Amesty. 

In an Aug. 7 court filing, Amesty’s attorney, Brad Bondi, wrote: “On July 28, 2025, the government withdrew the grand jury subpoenas it referenced as a basis to support its motion seeking an extension of the time period to seek an indictment. Moreover, we understand that the government has determined there will be no indictment in this matter.”

“The government has dropped its criminal complaint against me,” Amesty, a Windermere resident, wrote on X. “I am grateful to God, my amazing attorney Brad Bondi and his team, and my family for supporting me through this difficult time.”

Amesty cited Daniel 6:22: “My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.”

In the filing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Norway dismissed without prejudice the criminal complaint against Amesty and directed the clerk to terminate “all pending motions and close this matter.”

“After my attorneys presented overwhelming evidence of my innocence (as described in his recent court filing), the government acknowledged it didn’t have a case by requesting leave from the court to dismiss the prosecution,” Amesty wrote. “It was a flawed prosecution from the inception, filed by the then-outgoing U.S. attorney of the Biden administration four days before President (Donald) Trump’s inauguration. My legal team masterfully refuted all the false allegations against me and cleared my name.”

The ruling ends a nearly seven-month legal battle between the DOJ and Amesty.  

U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg on Thursday, Jan. 16, filed a criminal complaint charging Amesty with two counts of theft of government property related to COVID relief fraud. The complaint alleged Amesty and a relative in 2020 filed 15 applications for various organizations through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program.

The complaint alleged Amesty misrepresented information on two applications — for the Carolina Amesty Foundation Inc. and Dinocar Auto Sales LLC. The complaint accused Amesty of stealing $84,500 through foundation and $37,500 through Dinocar — a total of $122,000.

Amesty called the allegations “a clear religious prosecution and a further personal political attack.”