Government to Joplin attorney: We've got you dead to rights

A federal grand jury is investigating Joplin attorney Daniel Whitworth on charges ranging from bank fraud to identity theft.

In a target letter issued to Whitworth in October, U. S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri Tammy Dickinson noted that the Missouri Highway Patrol and the Internal Revenue Service had a mountain of evidence against Whitworth and said it might be in his best interest to get a lawyer and start working on a plea agreement.

The allegations against Whitworth including using clients' money for himself.

His first court appearance was today in Springfield. Whitworth asked the court to appoint an attorney for him.

(The accompanying screenshot is the beginning of Ms. Dickinson's target letter to Whitworth. Click to make it bigger.)