Judge Grants Restraining Order in Mon Ethos Case

Judge Carol Thomas-Jacobs granted the V.I. Justice Department’s motion for a temporary restraining order against Mon Ethos Pro Support on Thursday over the objection of company founder David Whitaker.

The Justice Department filed a complaint against Whitaker on July 2 in V.I. Superior Court along with the motion for a temporary restraining order and preliminary and permanent injunction, alleging his company breached its contract for cybersecurity services with the V.I. Police Department and was threatening to delete data critical to ongoing investigations and court cases.

According to the verified complaint, Mon Ethos demanded payment of $479,795 on June 15 for previous work “and threatened that data would be ‘lost’ if payment was not immediately remitted.” It was around the same time that the FBI announced that Police Commissioner Ray Martinez and Office of Management and Budget Director Jenifer O’Neal were the targets of a federal investigation regarding the government’s contract with Mon Ethos. Within days, both officials had resigned.

Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Mon Ethos is refusing to return equipment it was loaned under its contract with the VIPD, which is due to expire on Sept. 30, including a GrayKey — an item that lets police hack into mobile devices and retrieve encrypted information.