Former CEO of Mesa tech startup accused of swiping $1.5M from struggling company

A Mesa tech startup is hanging on by a thread after its former CEO allegedly siphoned millions of dollars from the company to buy a house, Lamborghini and other luxury items for a female escort he was seeing in Miami.

Cyber Dive cofounder Jeffrey Gottfurcht is under investigation by the FBI for two counts of wire fraud for allegedly transferring $1.5 million in company funds to his personal bank accounts, according to an FBI probable cause affidavit filed June 12 in U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.

The FBI launched the investigation after Gottfurcht’s wife, Emily, and Cyber Dive co-founder Derek Jackson reported their concerns to federal authorities.

Jackson, a former U.S. Army intelligence officer who cofounded Cyber Dive with Gottfurcht in 2019, has taken over as interim CEO after Gottfurcht was removed from the role in February.

Cyber Dive, which employed 28 people, subsequently laid off a majority of its workforce and has only weeks of operating cash left as it attempts to recover from the alleged fraud, Jackson said.

This story is posted in partnership with Phoenix Business Journal. Click to read the full story.

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