Yesterday, we reported that “Shark Tank” star Daymond John had been accused of trying to sell N95 masks to the state of Florida at an inflated price. Now, John has broken his silence to deny the allegations and protest his innocence.

John took to Twitter to describe the Miami Herald report accusing him of inflating the mask prices as “false” and “inaccurate.”

“Today’s Miami Herald story and subsequent reports are false, inaccurate and shows a complete reckless disregard for the truth,” John began in his lengthy statement.

The publication had claimed that John approached Florida state officials claiming that he could obtain one million of the life-saving masks from China and sell them to the state for $7 apiece, a major increase from the less than $2 they typically sell for. However, John claimed that his company the Shark Group simply offered to serve as an “intermediary” to vet the numerous 3M distributors.

“Let me be clear,” he continued. “Proper reporting would have shown I did not set any prices and that my team worked with the State of Florida to: 1. Save lives 2. Help vet the overwhelming amount of incoming PPE offerings based on my manufacturing expertise and guide them how to best do this 3. Play a pivotal role to stop pricing gouging, and successfully identify potential fraud and theft of PPE product to protect taxpayers funds.”

John went on to talk about the difficulties healthcare workers are facing amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that he had hoped his company could help Florida broker a deal on the masks.

“States were not setup to vet and operate global supply chains and sourcing. Many states were forced to blindly wire money to nefarious parties around the world and ultimately never received correct or safe product,” he said in his statement. “My company was serving as an intermediary to vet numerous 3M distributors and to protect Florida taxpayers, while establishing escrow protections that allowed the State to conduct proper due diligence before finalizing its purchase of masks.”

The Herald had noted that the deal fell through for unknown reasons, and John pointed out that he did not make a “penny” off Florida taxpayers for the deal that failed.

“Our system did exactly what it was intended to do. No money was spent and every penny of taxpayers money remained safe,” he wrote. “We will continue to work with the proper government agencies in this capacity.”

John ended his statement by attacking The Herald for their report against him.

“The Miami Herald’s characterization of my work completely disregards this,” he concluded. Instead, it opts for gross distortion of the truth in a blind effort to create splashy headlines to mislead readers.”

An important message to read in full. pic.twitter.com/qnUiJbgivz

— Daymond John (@TheSharkDaymond) April 22, 2020

3M, the company that manufactures the masks, had previously told Fox News that it “has no knowledge” of the Shark Group taking part in illegal price gouging. The company added that it does not know how John’s company would have been able to get ahold of the masks in the first place.

“3M is not aware of how the Shark Group would gain access to our respirators as it is not an authorized distributor of 3M products or one of our channel partners,” the company said.

This piece originally appeared in UpliftingToday.com and is used by permission.

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