Whistleblower Insider Blog

COVID Leaves Bags of Illicit Cash with Nowhere to Go

Posted 05/15/20
By Sarah “Poppy” Alexander

Few people may have given much thought to the actual mechanics of money laundering beyond rooting (or not) for Skyler and Walt’s carwash business. Many non-television criminals do, in fact, use otherwise legitimate small businesses to “launder” their money, mixing ill-gotten gains in with legitimate profits. The shutdown of the international economy has thus had a surprising consequence: illicit funds have...

Tagged in: COVID-19, Cryptocurrency, Money Laundering,

LET THE WHISTLES BLOW . . . .

Posted 05/14/20

OpEd by Gordon Schnell and Max Voldman Published In New York Daily News Add Dr. Rick Bright to the list of coronavirus whistleblowers silenced or sidelined for trying to push truth over politics as we battle this deadly scourge. He was just ousted from his post as director of the HHS agency working on a COVID-19 vaccine for what he claims was his refusal to support a “game-changing” supposed cure President...

Tagged in: CC Lawyers, COVID-19, Importance of Whistleblowers, Whistleblower Eligibility,

Let’s Talk about Nursing Homes – Who Will Raise the Red Flag Now That Routine Inspections Are Halted?

Posted 05/14/20
By Jessica T. Moore

In March 2020, the federal government abruptly paused non-emergency inspections of some 15,300 nursing homes and other long-term healthcare facilities nationwide in order to focus on preparations to respond to the threat of COVID-19 pandemic. This triage means that an on-site survey will be authorized only in cases of “immediate jeopardy” of serious harm (e.g., abuse) or reported infection-control...

Tagged in: CC Lawyers, COVID-19, FCA Federal, Healthcare Fraud, Importance of Whistleblowers, Provider Fraud, SNF,

COVID Frauds of the Week: First Charges for Fraud on the PPP

Posted 05/8/20

Handcuffed business-leader walking through jail.

As the COVID-19 crisis continues, so too do the reports of brazen fraud against the vulnerable and the government programs designed to help them. Like last week, here in our new feature we will focus on some noteworthy trends in government enforcement in this unfortunate new area of fraud.

Fraud on Government Spending

Notably, we have seen the first of what will undoubtedly be many government enforcement actions...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, COVID-19, FCA Federal, Importance of Whistleblowers, Whistleblower Eligibility, Whistleblower Rewards,

US to Recover More Than $49 Million in Assets Related to the 1MBD Embezzlement and Money Laundering Scandal

Posted 05/8/20

The DOJ entered into a $49 million settlement this week in one of the civil forfeiture cases related to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad fund scandal. The 1MDB fund was created by the government of Malaysia to promote economic development in Malaysia through global partnerships and foreign direct investment, and its funds were intended to be used for improving the well-being of the Malaysian people. According to...

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Money Laundering,

De Vos’s Education Department Quietly Granted For-Profit Mogul's Colleges Non-Profit Status, Reversing Obama Administration’s Decision

Posted 05/4/20

In the wake of scandals surrounding the for-profit college model, some institutions—and their executives—have sought to transition to non-profits. These conversions pose the concrete risk that taxpayers will be left subsidizing institutions trying to skirt federal regulations meant to protect students. As a result, the Obama Administration scrutinized them carefully, particularly where the rebranded non-profit...

Tagged in: Education Fraud, FCA Federal, Government Programs Fraud, Grant and Research Fraud,

Keeping Our Eyes Open for COVID-19 Fraud

Posted 05/1/20

The COVID-19 pandemic is shaping the way we live around the world and dominating headlines. Inevitably, it will be a major focus for government enforcement agencies. The whistleblower team at Constantine Cannon is closely tracking reports of fraud in the Coronavirus response. This week, we launched a new webpage as a hub for COVID-19 fraud news. We encourage you to visit this page, which will be updated...

Tagged in: COVID-19, Financial and Investment Fraud, Healthcare Fraud, Importance of Whistleblowers, Medicaid, Medicare, Whistleblower Rewards,

COVID Frauds of the Week: Misrepresented Mask Inventories and Medicare Fraud

Posted 05/1/20

Amid COVID-19-induced fear and hardship, fraud is on the rise. Already, the FTC has received over 18,000 reports of COVID-19 related fraud. In response, the SEC, CFTC, and other regulators announced they are on the lookout for pandemic-related fraud, and the DOJ warned would-be wrongdoers that it will not tolerate profiting off of public panic. This week, we focus on three enforcement actions brought by the...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, COVID-19, Healthcare Fraud, Medicare, SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, Securities Fraud,

Whistleblowers Welcome – Mary Inman Speaks at SCCE’s Virtual Conference for European Compliance Professionals

Posted 04/29/20

On April 21, 2020, Constantine Cannon partner Mary Inman spoke at the European Compliance and Ethics Institute (ECEI), a virtual conference organized by the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE), on the opportunities presented to European compliance officers by the 2019 EU Whistleblower Directive, including its requirement that companies create internal reporting mechanisms to facilitate...

Tagged in: CC Lawyers, Importance of Whistleblowers, International Whistleblowers,

Antitrust Violations, COVID-19, and the False Claims Act

Posted 04/23/20
By Leah Judge

As the federal government spends trillions of dollars to fight the coronavirus pandemic and alleviate its economic fallout, we can expect to see large chunks of that money misused and misappropriated by bad actors. Now more than ever, we’ll need whistleblowers to come forward to report what they see on the ground, whether it’s an unqualified company seeking Paycheck Protection Program funds intended for small...

Tagged in: Bribery and Bid-Rigging, COVID-19, FCA Federal, Importance of Whistleblowers, Pricing Fraud, Whistleblower Eligibility, Whistleblower Rewards,

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