Neville Roy Singham faces federal grand jury probe, CBS News reports
CBS News says the inquiry into the Code Pink founder’s husband began with foreign-agent questions and expanded into tax issues.
By Sal Moretti · Money Reporter
3 min read
Neville Roy Singham, a wealthy tech entrepreneur and major funder of left-wing causes, is the subject of a criminal grand jury investigation in the Southern District of New York, CBS News reported, citing multiple people familiar with the matter.
The inquiry began with possible violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act and has widened into a criminal tax investigation, according to CBS News. Investigators are examining whether money was improperly routed through nonprofits Singham controls and whether he made false statements on nonprofit tax filings known as Form 990s, the network reported.
Fox News first reported the criminal investigation. Singham has not been charged with a crime, and CBS News reported that it is not clear whether the probe will result in charges. CBS News said it contacted Singham for comment.
Singham is married to Jodie Evans, a co-founder of the anti-war group Code Pink. He is also a major financial supporter of the People’s Forum, a New York City nonprofit that describes its work as focused on working-class and marginalized communities, according to CBS News.
Singham founded the IT consulting company Thoughtworks and sold it to a private equity firm in 2017 for $785 million, according to CBS News, citing earlier reporting by The New York Times. Around that period, CBS News reported, Singham moved business operations to Shanghai and began funding a broad international network of nonprofits and think tanks with hundreds of millions of dollars.
China ties draw scrutiny
The New York Times and The Free Press have reported that Singham used shell companies and other opaque entities to support leftist political causes while promoting pro-Beijing messages. Those outlets also reported that he put substantial money into Code Pink, funding as much as one quarter of its operations.
Code Pink later softened its position on China, according to CBS News. The network reported that the group had previously been sharply critical of Beijing’s human rights record, but later defended China against widespread reports that its government was committing genocide against a Muslim minority group in the country’s far northwest.
Republican members of Congress have scrutinized Singham since last year over his embrace of Chinese political views, CBS News reported. Some lawmakers have questioned whether he has acted as a foreign agent of China.
Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri, the Republican chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, has alleged that several nonprofits controlled by Singham are connected to China and have moved money into political causes in the United States, according to CBS News. The committee has demanded documents as it looks into possible coordination among Singham, his nonprofits and Chinese government officials.
CBS News reported that the Chinese Embassy, Code Pink and the People’s Forum did not immediately comment.
Part of wider nonprofit scrutiny
CBS News described the Singham probe as the latest investigation by the Trump administration involving progressive nonprofit organizations.
The report comes as President Trump is planning a prime-time address Thursday alleging that China tried to interfere in the 2020 presidential election, CBS News previously reported.
Earlier this year, the Justice Department obtained an indictment against the Southern Poverty Law Center, accusing it of lying to donors and banks by routing money through its informant program to hate groups, according to CBS News. The SPLC has pleaded not guilty and has accused the Justice Department of bringing a vindictive prosecution.
Federal prosecutors in Chicago have also opened a separate investigation into a nonprofit run by LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, CBS News reported. The nonprofit helped cover some legal expenses for E. Jean Carroll, the writer who won two civil cases alleging Trump sexually assaulted her and defamed her. Hoffman has denied wrongdoing, according to CBS News.
This story draws on original reporting from CBS News.