The city of Gainesville and Gainesville Police Department has agreed to pay $60,000 to three employees of Colliers International who claimed their rights were violated during a SWAT raid.
In 2021, an armed SWAT team raided the local office of Daniel Drotos and Michael Ryals, whom their former employer accused of stealing trade secrets and clients. Three Colliers International employees were detained and had their electronic devices seized.
That raid, as well as a yearlong investigation, turned up empty.
The recent settlement, signed June 19, releases GPD Detective Ronald A. Pinkston, Lieutenant M. West and the city of Gainesville from any claims relating to the case and raid. The $60,000 will be paid to the three employees — Jason Hurst, Nicola Moreland and Bennett Harrell — who were detained by the SWAT team.
Though the defendants agreed to the settlement, they stipulated that they deny any liability. The settlement is a way to avoid any additional expenses and uncertainty accompanied by future litigation, according to the agreement.
In 2022, the criminal charges previously filed against the real estate agents Drotos and Ryals were also dropped by the State Attorney’s Office. The parties have been entangled in several connected lawsuits, all of which have been settled or closed as part of an agreement reached through mediation.
2021 SWAT raid
According to the 2021 search warrant, which was based on testimony from Gainesville police detective Ronald Pinkston, the search stemmed from a “trade secret theft” case.
Those named in the warrant — Drotos, Ryals, Lauren Edwards and Rory Causseaux — are four former Bosshardt Realty Services employees who went to work for Colliers International, as well as Christian Oldenburg, the managing director of Colliers International Northeast Florida.
The warrant gave police permission to search the Colliers office for recording devices, mobile phones, computers, tablets, emails or texts showing trade secrets or articles taken from Bosshardt Realty without permission.
Under state law, someone who steals a trade secret can be convicted of a third degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and up to a $5,000 fine.
Drotos and Ryals were formally charged in February 2022 by the state with racketeering, scheming to defraud/organized fraud and theft of trade secrets. Drotos faced an additional charge of offense against intellectual property. The two, however, maintained their innocence throughout the process. All charges against those named in the warrant were dropped.
Hurst said none of the three people who were in the office during the raid — himself, an intern and a coworker — were even named in the warrant. And he had no idea why police sent such a contingent over for what is clearly a white-collar case.