Five core members of the PMA Group’s defense lobbying team, including Kaylene Green, John Lynch and Daniel Cunningham, have left the troubled firm and formed their own partnership, Flagship Government Relations. The departures occurred on Friday — just three days before it was confirmed Monday night that federal agents raided the firm’s Arlington offices in November. The move follows failed efforts to buy the firm from its founder, Paul Magliocchetti, according to a statement from Flagship. Magliocchetti is a former aide to Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), the chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, and the firm has maintained close ties to the powerful cardinal, who has come under increasing scrutiny for his earmarks, many of which have gone to PMA clients. “Paul Magliocchetti recently indicated that he would be retiring from PMA and invited members of senior management to negotiate an agreement to take over much of the client work,” the statement said. “We were unable to reach agreement and resigned from PMA last Friday. We have formed Flagship Government Relations to provide a broad range of Washington representation services to clients,” the statement said. According to the statement, Green, one of PMA’s first employees, will be Flagship’s president and Lynch its chief operating officer. Rich Efford and Sean Fogarty round out the firm’s principals. Since their Friday resignation, according to the statement, “several other former PMA employees have joined Flagship.” A PMA spokesman, Patrick Dorton, could not immediately be reached for comment. Tory Newmyer contributed to this report.