Photo by Cameron Healy
The City of Gulfport has sued former Council member Ian O’Hara in an effort to recover $5,756.40 in public money, but the court cannot require him to answer the complaint until he is served. As of Aug. 4, the court docket contained no return showing that service had been completed.
The City filed the complaint July 17, accusing O’Hara of civil theft and unjust enrichment stemming from personal purchases allegedly made with his City-issued credit card. The City seeks three times its claimed losses, along with interest, attorney fees, and court costs.
Service Not Shown in Court Record
The Pinellas County Clerk of Court issued a summons July 22 directing that O’Hara be served at a 15th Avenue South apartment in Gulfport. Under Florida rules, he has 20 calendar days after service to file a written response.
The public docket does not establish whether that deadline has started. O’Hara could have been served before the process server filed the required return, or service attempts may still be underway.
The Gabber Newspaper requested the name of the process server from the City Manager’s office, but had not received it by press time. We will update the article online when we receive it.
Court records also list different addresses for O’Hara. The City directed service to the 15th Avenue South apartment, while a judgment entered in one of his criminal cases in February listed another Gulfport address.
City Alleges Unpaid Reimbursement
According to the complaint, O’Hara used his City-issued credit card for alcohol, meals, taxis, and laundry unrelated to City business while representing Ward IV from March 2023 until his resignation Nov. 19, 2024.
The City alleges O’Hara agreed to reimburse those expenses after officials confronted him. According to the complaint, he made one $200 payment but failed to make additional payments, leaving an unpaid balance of $5,756.40.
Before filing suit, City Attorney Andrew Salzman sent O’Hara a civil-theft demand letter June 12 requiring payment within 30 days of receiving the notice.
The demand letter lists $16,668 in one paragraph and $16,688 in another. Neither figure equals three times the $5,756.40 balance alleged in the subsequent complaint, which would total $17,269.20.
The letter warned that the City could seek attorney fees and costs if it filed a lawsuit. The complaint does not explain the differences among the three figures.
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That’s not all that happened at the Aug. 4 Gulfport City Council meeting. Read about e-bikes, public safety, special events, and what we overheard.
Resignation and Repayment Agreement
The lawsuit follows months of efforts by the City to recover the money without litigation.
The Gabber Newspaper first reported O’Hara’s City credit card spending in October 2024. A later review found he charged $9,474.81 after taking office, including $2,287.64 in expenses associated with City travel and conferences.
O’Hara initially refused to resign after then-Mayor Sam Henderson requested his resignation during the Nov. 19, 2024 City Council meeting. He resigned after Council members began considering a State Attorney’s Office investigation, a Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation, suspension without pay, and a request for the governor to remove him.
The City later proposed withholding criminal charges if O’Hara signed a six-month repayment agreement. Salzman told Council in January 2025 that O’Hara had not signed the agreement, prompting Council members to give him seven days before moving forward with possible criminal charges.
According to previously reported City records, O’Hara made a $200 payment Feb. 14, 2025, but made no additional payments. In May 2025, the Council unanimously directed Salzman to refer the matter to the State Attorney’s Office.
Subsequent Criminal Cases
Since leaving office, O’Hara has faced unrelated criminal cases.
Prosecutors charged him with three counts of second-degree misdemeanor petit theft involving merchandise valued at less than $100 allegedly taken from a Gulfport Winn-Dixie on July 21, Aug. 10, and Aug. 29, 2025.
On Nov. 24, the court sentenced O’Hara to six months of reporting probation, along with financial penalties, a stay-away order, and other conditions.
In February, O’Hara admitted violating probation. On Feb. 23, a judge imposed concurrent 15-day jail sentences, credited him with 15 days already served, ordered him to pay $132.27 in restitution to Winn-Dixie and continued his probation.
That same day, O’Hara pleaded no contest in a separate case of driving with a suspended license. The judge adjudicated him guilty of the second-degree misdemeanor and ordered him to pay $500 in fines and costs.
The criminal court records do not establish O’Hara’s current location or whether he is avoiding service in the City’s civil lawsuit. Until a return of service is filed, the public record will not establish when his deadline to respond begins.
The Gulfport City Council’s next meeting is Sept. 3 at 6 p.m.
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