Category Archives: IRS CID

Michigan Home Health Agency Owner Pleads Guilty in $22 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy

Posted on by
A former owner and manager of two Detroit-area home health care agencies has pleaded guilty in federal court for his role in a $22 million Medicare fraud conspiracy.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Chicago Regional Office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Jarod Koopman of Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) made the announcement.

Usman Butt, 40, of Shelby Township, Michigan, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Bernard A. Friedman in the Eastern District of Michigan to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and aiding or assisting in preparing a fraudulent tax return on Aug. 27, 2014, and the case was unsealed today.  Sentencing has been scheduled for Jan. 13, 2015.  His plea follows that of his former business partner and co-conspirator, Muhammad Aamir, who pleaded guilty on Aug. 20, 2014.

According to plea documents, Butt admitted that beginning in 2008 and continuing through January 2013, he conspired with others to bill Medicare for home health care services that were not actually rendered, not medically necessary, and procured through paying illegal kickbacks.

Specifically, Butt admitted that the physical therapy and skilled nursing services provided by his companies, Prestige Home Health Services Inc., based in Troy, Michigan, and Royal Home Health Care Inc., of Clawson and Troy, Michigan, were not medically necessary or even rendered.  Butt also admitted that he fabricated patient files to give the false appearance that the services were medically necessary and actually provided.

During the scheme, Butt submitted or caused the submission of false claims to Medicare, which in turn caused Medicare to pay approximately $12,607,262.  According to court records, the conspiracy resulted in the submission of fraudulent claims that caused Medicare to pay more than $22 million.  Butt also admitted that he assisted a co-conspirator in filing a false corporate tax return for Prestige, deducting illegal kickbacks as “business expenses” to save Prestige at least $321,485 in taxes due for 2009.

This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG, and IRS-CI, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.  This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Niall M. O’Donnell and James P. McDonald of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 2,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

Detroit-Area Operator of Adult Day Care Center, Two Home Health Care Company Owners Convicted in $29 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy

Posted on by

A federal jury in Detroit late yesterday convicted the operator of an adult day care center and two individuals who owned and operated a network of home health care companies for their participation in a $29 million Medicare fraud scheme.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Office of Investigations Detroit Office and Special Agent in Charge Jarod Koopman of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Detroit Field Office made the announcement.

According to evidence presented at trial, Felicar Williams, 51, of Dearborn, Michigan, operated Haven Adult Day Care Center LLC (Haven), which purported to provide adult day care services for patients suffering from mental health disorders such as schizophrenia and dementia.  At Williams’s direction, Haven billed Medicare for sophisticated mental health services purportedly provided by other, unlicensed staff members.

Evidence at trial also established that Abdul Malik Al-Jumail, 54, and his daughter, Jamella Al-Jumail, 25, both of Brownstown, Michigan, owned and operated a series of fraudulent home health care companies, including ABC Home Care Inc., Associates in Home Care Inc., Accessible Home Care Inc., Swift Home Care LLC, and Be Well Home Care LLC.  The companies billed Medicare for home health services that were not needed or not provided.  At the instruction of both Abdul Malik Al-Jumail and Jamella Al-Jumail, employees of the home health companies fabricated patient medical records to make it appear that the services were needed and provided.

According to evidence presented at trial, Abdul Malik Al-Jumail paid kickbacks to Williams to obtain billing information about patients at Haven.  He then used the information to bill Medicare for home health care services that were never provided.

In addition, the evidence at trial showed that, on May 2, 2012, the day her father was arrested, Jamella Al-Jumail instructed an employee to retrieve falsified patient medical records from the company.  Later that day, Jamella Al-Jumail and others helped burn the false records.

Haven and the various home health care companies billed Medicare for more than $29 million in the course of the conspiracy.

The defendants were charged in a superseding indictment on May 1, 2014.  After the 12-week jury trial, Williams was found guilty of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks in relation to the sale of Medicare billing information to Abdul Malik Al-Jumail.

Abdul Malik Al-Jumail and Jamella Al-Jumail were each found guilty of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.  Abdul Malik Al-Jumail was also found guilty of conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks.  Jamella Al-Jumail was also found guilty of destroying documents in connection with a federal investigation.

Carey Vigor, 61, a psychiatrist from Algonac, Michigan, was also charged in the indictment and was acquitted by the jury.

Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.  Two other individuals charged in the indictment, Mohammed Sadiq and Philandis Thomas, are scheduled for trial in October 2014.  One individual remains a fugitive.

The charges contained in an indictment are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case is being investigated by HHS-OIG, FBI and IRS-CI and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Patrick Hurford, Chris Cestaro and Brooke Harper of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged nearly 2,000 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $6 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

$80 Million Judgment Entered Against BNP Paribas for False Claims to the U.S. Department of Agriculture

Posted on by

The Department of Justice announced today that an $80 million False Claims Act judgment was entered against BNP Paribas for submitting false claims for payment guarantees issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  BNP Paribas is a global financial institution headquartered in Paris.

“We will not tolerate the misuse of taxpayer funded programs designed to help American businesses,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “Companies that abuse these programs will be held accountable.”

The United States filed a lawsuit against BNP Paribas in connection with its receipt of payment guarantees under USDA’s Supplier Credit Guarantee (SCG) Program.  The program provided payment guarantees to U.S.-based exporters for their sales of grain and other agricultural commodities to importers in foreign countries.  The program encouraged American exporters to sell American agricultural commodities to foreign importers and covered part of the losses if the foreign importers failed to pay.  The SCG Program regulations provided that U.S. exporters were ineligible to participate in the SCG Program if the exporter and foreign importer were under common ownership or control.

The judgment entered by the court resolves the government’s allegations that, from 1998 to 2005, BNP Paribas participated in a sustained scheme to defraud the SCG Program.  In furtherance of the scheme, American exporters and Mexican importers who were under common control improperly obtained SCG Program export credit guarantees for transactions between the affiliated exporters and importers.  In some cases, the underlying transactions were shams and did not involve any real shipment of grain.  BNP Paribas accepted assignment of the credit guarantees from the American exporters, even though it knew that the affiliated exporters and importers were ineligible for SCG Program financing, and a BNP Paribas vice-president, Jerry Cruz, received bribes from the exporters.  Beginning in April 2005, when the Mexican importers began defaulting on their payment obligations, BNP Paribas submitted claims to the USDA for the resulting losses.

On Jan. 20, 2012, Cruz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, mail fraud and wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

“I would like to thank the Department of Justice and the USDA General Counsel’s office for their collaboration in recovering $80 million under this judgment,” said Administrator of USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service Phil Karsting.  “This illustrates the importance USDA and this administration places on protecting the integrity of our programs.”

The resolution of this matter was the result of a coordinated effort among the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the USDA, the USDA Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.

The lawsuit is captioned United States v. BNP Paribas SA, et al., No. 4:11 cv 3718 (S.D. Tex.).

14-780

Former Executive Director of Virgin Islands Legislature Charged with Bribery and Extortion in Award of Government Contracts

Posted on by

The former executive director of the Legislature of the Virgin Islands was indicted today by a federal grand jury in the Virgin Islands for accepting bribes and engaging in extortion in the award of contracts with the Legislature, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe for the District of the Virgin Islands.
The indictment charges Louis “Lolo” Willis, 56, of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, with three counts of federal programs bribery and three counts of extortion under color of official right.
According to the indictment, Willis was the executive director of the Legislature between 2009 and 2012.  One of his responsibilities included oversight of the renovation of the Legislature building, which included awarding and entering into contracts on behalf of the Legislature.    These contracts included contracts for general construction, air-conditioning services and carpentry, which were not publicly bid.  Willis was also responsible for paying the contractors for their work.    As alleged in the indictment, Willis accepted payments, including, among other things, thousands of dollars in cash, from three contractors in exchange for using his official position to secure contracting work for the contractors and to ensure they received payment upon completion.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s San Juan Division, the Office of the Virgin Islands Inspector General and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation.    The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Peter Mason and Jennifer Blackwell of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Anderson of the District of the Virgin Islands.

 

Former Bank of America Executive Pleads Guilty for Role in Conspiracy and Fraud Involving Investment Contracts for Municipal Bonds Proceeds

Posted on by
A former Bank of America executive pleaded guilty today for his participation in a conspiracy and scheme to defraud related to bidding for contracts for the investment of municipal bond proceeds and other municipal finance contracts, the Department of Justice announced.

Phillip D. Murphy, the former managing director of Bank of America’s municipal derivatives products desk from 1998 to 2002, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Max O. Cogburn Jr. in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina to participating in a fraud conspiracy and wire fraud scheme with employees of  Rubin/Chambers, Dunhill Insurance Services Inc., also known as CDR Financial Products, a broker of municipal finance contracts, and others.  Murphy also pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to make false entries in the reports and statements originating from his desk, which were sent to bank management.

Murphy was indicted by a grand jury on July 19, 2012.  According to the indictment, Murphy  participated in a wire fraud scheme and separate fraud conspiracies that began as early as 1998 and continued until 2006.

“By manipulating what was intended to be a competitive bidding process, the conspirators defrauded municipalities, public entities and taxpayers across the country,” said Brent Snyder, Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division’s Criminal Enforcement Program.  “Today’s guilty plea reaffirms the Antitrust Division’s continued efforts to hold accountable those who corrupt and subvert the competitive process in our financial markets.”

Public entities seek to invest money from a variety of sources, primarily the proceeds of municipal bonds that they issue, to raise money for, among other things, public projects.  Public entities typically hire a broker to conduct a competitive bidding process for the award of the investment agreements and often for other municipal finance contracts.

According to the charges, Murphy conspired with CDR and others to increase the number and profitability of investment agreements and other municipal finance contracts awarded to Bank of America.  Murphy won investment agreements through CDR’s manipulation of the bidding process in obtaining losing bids from other providers, which is explicitly prohibited by U.S. Treasury regulations.  As a result of the information, various providers won investment agreements and other municipal finance contracts at artificially determined prices.  In exchange for this information, Murphy submitted intentionally losing bids for certain investment agreements and other contracts when requested, and, on occasion, agreed to pay or arranged for kickbacks to be paid to CDR and other co-conspirator brokers.

Murphy and his co-conspirators misrepresented to municipal issuers that the bidding process was competitive and in compliance with U.S. Treasury regulations.  This caused the municipal issuers to award investment agreements and other municipal finance contracts to providers that otherwise would not have been awarded the contracts if the issuers had true and accurate information regarding the bidding process.  Such conduct placed the tax-exempt status of the underlying bonds in jeopardy.

“Mr. Murphy’s actions undermined the public’s trust when he conspired to manipulate a competitive bidding process,” said Richard Weber, Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).  “IRS-CI has experienced great success in unraveling significant and complex financial frauds as we work in close collaboration with our law enforcement partners.”

“Mr. Murphy ripped off hard working American taxpayers and cash-strapped municipalities all in pursuit of his own lucre,” said George Venizelos, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office.  “Let this serve as a reminder to others who are entrusted to act in the public’s best interest; your lack of candor won’t go without notice.”

Murphy pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy and one count of wire fraud.  The fraud conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  The wire fraud charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.  The false bank records conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  The maximum fines for each of these offenses may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.

Including Murphy, a total of 17 individuals have been convicted or pleaded guilty.  Additionally, one company has pleaded guilty.

The prosecution is being handled by Steven Tugander, Richard Powers, Eric Hoffmann, Patricia Jannaco and Stephanie Raney of the Antitrust Division.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kurt Meyers, Michael Savage and Mark Odulio of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina have also provided valuable assistance in this matter.  The guilty plea announced today resulted from a wide-ranging investigation conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York office, the FBI and the IRS-CI.  The division coordinated its investigation with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Today’s guilty plea is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes.  With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorney’s offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud.  Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations.  Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants.   For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov .

Las Vegas Attorney Pleads Guilty for Role in Multimillion-Dollar Fraud

Posted on by
A Las Vegas attorney pleaded guilty today for his role in multiple schemes to defraud his clients, to defraud the IRS and to fraudulently gain control of condominium homeowners’ associations (HOAs) in the Las Vegas area to ensure that the HOAs would steer business to a certain law firm and a certain construction company.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Laura Bucheit of the FBI’s Las Vegas Field Office, Sheriff Doug Gillespie of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Acting Special Agent in Charge Shea Jones of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) made the announcement.
Barry Levinson, 47, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan in the District of Nevada to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.   Levinson is the 30th person to plead guilty in connection with the scheme to defraud HOAs in the Las Vegas area.   Levinson simultaneously pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion and one count of wire fraud, with the latter charge relating to his embezzlement of his legal clients’ funds.
Levinson admitted that from approximately August 2003 through February 2009, he participated in a scheme to control various HOA boards of directors so that the HOA boards would award the handling of construction-related lawsuits and remedial construction contracts to his law firm and construction company designated by Levinson’s co-conspirators.   This scheme was carried out in part by straw buyers who purchased properties in their names that were in reality paid for and controlled by other co-conspirators.   According to plea documents, Levinson’s co-conspirators managed and operated the payments associated with maintaining straw properties by running a so-called “Bill Pay Program,” by which co-conspirators funded the properties through several limited liability companies at the direction of a co-conspirator.   Many of the payments were wired from California to Nevada.
Levinson admitted that he was hired to represent the Park Avenue condominium complex, but he treated a co-conspirator as his client rather than the HOA itself.   Levinson also admitted that several of his co-conspirators rigged an HOA board election at Park Avenue.   Levinson admitted that, after a lawsuit was filed by the homeowners and a special election master was designated for the make-up election, he attempted to bribe the special election master.
Similarly, Levinson admitted that after a rigged election at the Pebble Creek HOA, the homeowners filed a recall petition.   Levinson was hired as the HOA general counsel at the direction of a co-conspirator and took several steps to deter the recall election, including firing the property management company and filing a lawsuit to stop the recall election.
Related to the tax evasion charge, Levinson admitted that he failed to file taxes for the 2005 to 2010 tax years and filed a false 2011 tax return.   Levinson also admitted that he took affirmative steps to evade taxes for the tax years 2009, 2010 and 2011, including concealing cash earnings from the IRS and telling the IRS that his business was no longer operating.
Finally, related to the wire fraud charge, Levinson admitted that between March 2010 and September 2011, he embezzled nearly $180,000 from at least nine different minor personal injury clients. Levinson also admitted that he stole another $65,000 from an individual for whom he was serving as an escrow agent.
As part of the plea agreement, Levinson has agreed to be disbarred by the State Bar of Nevada.
Levinson’s sentencing is scheduled for May 5, 2014.   The maximum sentence for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud is 30 years in prison.   The maximum sentence for attempting to evade or defeat federal taxes is five years in prison.   The maximum penalty for wire fraud is 20 years in prison.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, IRS-CI and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Criminal Intelligence Section.
The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief Charles La Bella, Senior Deputy Chief for Litigation Kathleen McGovern and Trial Attorneys Thomas B.W. Hall and Alison Anderson of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.   The Department also thanks former Trial Attorneys Mary Ann McCarthy and Nicole Sprinzen for their efforts in prosecuting the case.

 

Home Health Agency Owner Sentenced for Role in $11 Million Detroit Medicare Fraud Scheme

Posted on by
A home health agency owner who participated in a Medicare fraud scheme that totaled almost $11 million was sentenced in Detroit today to serve 120 months in prison.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley III of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office made the announcement.
Chiradeep Gupta, 39, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood in the Eastern District of Michigan.  In addition to his prison term, Gupta was sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay more than $10 million in restitution, jointly and severally with his co-defendants.
On Oct. 26, 2012,  Gupta, a physical therapist and part-owner of All American, a home health care company located in Oak Park, Mich., was found guilty at trial of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and three substantive counts of money laundering.
According to evidence presented at trial, Gupta and his co-conspirators caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare through All American and Patient Choice, another Oak Park-based home health care company, which purported to provide skilled nursing and physical therapy services to Medicare beneficiaries in the greater Detroit area.
The evidence showed that Gupta and his co-conspirators used patient recruiters, who paid Medicare beneficiaries to sign blank documents for physical therapy services that were never provided and/or medically unnecessary.  The owners of Patient Choice and All American paid physicians to sign referrals and other therapy documents necessary to bill Medicare.  Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants provided through contractors, including two owned by Gupta, would then create fake medical records using the blank, pre-signed forms obtained by the patient recruiters to make it appear as if physical therapy services had actually been rendered, when, in fact, the services had not been rendered.
According to evidence presented at trial, Gupta provided to Patient Choice and All American physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who created fake patient files using blank, pre-signed forms obtained by patient recruiters to make it appear as if the physical therapy services billed to Medicare had actually been provided.  Gupta also doctored and directed the doctoring of fake patient files.  The evidence at trial showed that Gupta laundered the proceeds of the fraud through multiple shell companies.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and the Internal Revenue Service and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Gejaa Gobena, Assistant Chief Catherine Dick and Trial Attorney Niall O’Donnell of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,700 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5.5 billion.   In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

Defense Department Employee and Two Prime Contractors Plead Guilty in Widening Bribery / Kickback Case

Posted on by

 

DEFENSE DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEE AND TWO PRIME CONTRACTORS PLEAD GUILTY IN WIDENING BRIBERY / KICKBACK CASE

Alcoa World Alumina Agrees to Plead Guilty to Foreign Bribery and Pay $223 Million in Fines and Forfeiture

Posted on by
Alcoa World Alumina LLC, a majority-owned and controlled global alumina sales company of Alcoa Inc., has agreed to plead guilty later today and pay $223 million in criminal fines and forfeiture to resolve charges that it paid millions of dollars in bribes through an international middleman in London to officials of the Kingdom of Bahrain, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney David J. Hickton of the Western District of Pennsylvania, Chief Richard Weber of IRS—Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and Assistant Director in Charge Valerie Parlave of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
“Alcoa World Alumina today admits to its involvement in a corrupt international underworld in which a middleman, secretly held offshore bank accounts, and shell companies were used to funnel bribes to government officials in order to secure business,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Raman.    “The law does not permit companies to avoid responsibility for foreign corruption by outsourcing bribery to their agents, and, as today’s prosecution demonstrates, neither will the Department of Justice.”
“Today’s case shows that multinational corporations cannot get away with using middlemen to structure sham business arrangements that funnel kickbacks to government officials,” said U.S. Attorney Hickton.
Alcoa World Alumina has agreed to plead guilty in the Western District of Pennsylvania to one count of violating the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA in connection with a 2004 corrupt transaction, to pay a criminal fine of $209 million, and to administratively forfeit $14 million.   As part of the plea agreement, Alcoa Inc. (Alcoa) has agreed to maintain and implement an enhanced global anti-corruption compliance program.
In a parallel action, Alcoa settled with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)  and will pay an additional $161 million in disgorgement, bringing the total amount of U.S. criminal and regulatory penalties to be paid by Alcoa and Alcoa World Alumina to $384 million.
“This case is the result of unraveling complex financial transactions used by Alcoa World Alumina LLC’s agent to facilitate kickbacks to foreign government officials,” said Chief Richard Weber of IRS-CI.   “IRS-CI will not be deterred by the use of sophisticated international financial transactions as we continue our ongoing efforts to pursue corporations and executives who use hidden offshore assets and shell companies to circumvent the law.”
“Corrupt kickback payments to foreign government officials to obtain business diminish public confidence in global commerce,” said Assistant Director in Charge Parlave.  “There is no place for bribery in any business model or corporate culture.   Today’s plea demonstrates the FBI and our law enforcement partners are committed to curbing corruption and will pursue all those who try to advance their businesses through bribery.”
Today’s court filings allege that Alcoa of Australia, another Alcoa-controlled entity, originally secured a long-term alumina supply agreement with Aluminium Bahrain B.S.C. (Alba), an aluminium smelter controlled by the government of Bahrain.   At the request of certain members of Bahrain’s Royal Family who controlled the tender process, Alcoa of Australia inserted a London-based middleman with close ties to certain Royal Family members as a sham sales agent and agreed to pay him a corrupt commission intended to conceal bribe payments, according to court papers.   Over time, Alcoa of Australia expanded the relationship with the middleman, identified as Consultant A in today’s court filings, to begin invoicing increasingly larger volumes of alumina sales through his shell companies, which permitted Consultant A to make larger bribe payments to certain government officials, according to today’s filings.
As admitted in the charging documents, in 2004, Alcoa World Alumina corruptly secured a long-term alumina supply agreement with Alba by agreeing to purportedly sell over 1.5 million metric tons of alumina to Alba through offshore shell companies owned by Consultant A.   The sham distributorship permitted Consultant A to mark up the price of alumina by approximately $188 million from 2005 to 2009, the duration of the corrupt supply agreement.   Court filings allege that Consultant A used the mark-up to pay tens of millions in corrupt kickbacks to Bahraini government officials, including senior members of Bahrain’s Royal Family.   To conceal the illicit payments, Consultant A and the government officials used various offshore bank accounts, including accounts held under aliases, at several major financial institutions around the world, including in Guernsey, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.
In addition to the monetary penalty, Alcoa and Alcoa World Alumina agreed to cooperate with the department in its continuing investigation of individuals and institutions involved in these matters.
The plea agreement and related court filings acknowledge Alcoa’s current financial condition as a factor relevant to the size of the criminal fine, as well as Alcoa’s and Alcoa World Alumina’s extensive cooperation with the department, including conducting an extensive internal investigation, making proffers to the government, voluntarily making current and former employees available for interviews, and providing relevant documents to the department.   Court filings also acknowledge subsequent anti-corruption remedial efforts undertaken by Alcoa.
The department acknowledges and expresses its appreciation for the cooperation and assistance of the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, the Guernsey Financial Intelligence Service and Guernsey Police, the Australian Federal Police, the U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office, and other law enforcement authorities in the department’s investigation of this matter.   The department also acknowledges and expresses its appreciation for the significant assistance provided by the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
The investigation is being conducted by Special Agents and analysts with the IRS-Criminal Investigation’s Washington Field Office and the FBI’s Washington Field Office.   The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief Adam G. Safwat and Trial Attorneys Andrew Gentin, Allan J. Medina and Andrew H. Warren of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania.   The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs also provided significant assistance during this investigation.
Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa .

Houston Doctor Indicted for Her Alleged Role in $158 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

Posted on by
A Houston doctor has been arrested on charges related to her alleged participation in a $158 million Medicare fraud scheme involving false claims for mental health treatment.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas, Special Agent in Charge Stephen L. Morris of the FBI’s Houston Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Dallas Regional Office of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) made the announcement.
Sharon Iglehart, 56, of Houston, was charged in an indictment, filed in the Southern District of Texas and unsealed today, with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and four counts of health care fraud.   If convicted, Iglehart faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count.   Iglehart was arrested on Dec. 16, 2013, and made her initial appearance in federal court in Houston today.
According to the indictment, Iglehart allegedly participated in a scheme to defraud Medicare beginning in 2005 and continuing until May 2012.  The defendant allegedly caused the submission of false and fraudulent claims for partial hospitalization program (PHP) services to Medicare through a Houston hospital.  A PHP is a form of intensive outpatient treatment for severe mental illness.
The indictment alleges that the defendant and her co-conspirators submitted or caused to be submitted approximately $158 million in claims to Medicare for PHP services purportedly provided by the hospital, when in fact the PHP services were medically unnecessary or never provided.
In February 2012, Mohammad Khan, an assistant administrator at the hospital who managed many of the hospital’s PHPs, was indicted for his role in the scheme.   Khan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to pay illegal kickbacks, and five counts of paying illegal kickbacks.   Khan has not yet been sentenced.
In October 2012, Earnest Gibson III, the administrator of the hospital, along with Earnest Gibson IV, William Bullock III, Robert Ferguson, Regina Askew, Leslie Clark and Robert Crane, were indicted for their roles in the scheme.   Leslie Clark pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to pay and receive illegal kickbacks.   Clark has not yet been sentenced.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG, MFCU, Internal Revenue Service’s Houston Field Office, the Chicago Field Office of the Railroad Retirement Board’s Office of Inspector General, and the Office of Personnel Management’s Office of Inspector General and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.   The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Laura M.K. Cordova of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,700 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5.5 billion.   In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.