Court filings show part of government's case against Highland Park School Board member Robert Davis

HIGHLAND PARK, Mich. (WXYZ) - Court documents just made public shed new light on the US government’s case against union activist and Highland Park School Board member Robert Davis.

Davis has been indicted for allegedly embezzling tens of thousands of dollars from the school system, and the court filings tell much of the story.

The FBI, which tracked Davis for months, says evidence shows he used the money on spending sprees at stores like Bed Bath & Beyond, Ferragamo, Gymboree, Footlocker and Gap Kids.

About $84,000 was spent in debit card purchases at several shops, and about another $86,000 was used for cash withdrawals, according to the court documents.

Reached by cell phone today, Davis said he could not comment on the case and referred calls to his attorney Carl Marlinga.

Marlinga has not yet returned a phone message to his office.

The money came out of an account called Citizens United to Save Highland Park which was registered at Davis’ Highland Park home, according to the court documents.

According to the filings school officials told investigators they were suspicious of Davis and questionable contracts and receipts. The also told investigators that they had never heard of Citizens United, which now appears to have been a phony non-profit set up for Davis’ own personal wealth.

Davis had told school district officials the money was being spent on radio advertising using a company called Zenoco.

Zenoco is registered to an address of an upscale home in Ray Township.

The homeowner told 7 Action News his sons went before a grand jury because of their ties to Davis and a construction project for the Highland Park School District.

There is no evidence that radio ads were ever done for the district, and it appears Davis used Zenoco as a way to funnel money from Highland Park schools to himself.