1. Home
  2. Practices
  3. Whistleblower Representation
  4. Recent Government Enforcement
  5. DOJ Enforcement Actions
Have a Claim?

Click here for a confidential contact or call:

1-212-350-2774 
								
			


								
						
			


								
			

	
Whistleblower Quiz

	
Would you blow the whistle?

 Take our Quiz


									
	
						

		

			
			

				

					
DOJ Enforcement Actions

					
The Department of Justice is the principal federal agency authorized to enforce the laws and defend the interests of the United States. As such, it oversees the enforcement of the False Claims Act, the foundation of the American whistleblower system, as well as numerous other laws.


The agency traces its origins to the Judiciary Act of 1789 which created the Office of the Attorney General, and the 1870 Act to Establish the Department of Justice, which established the agency as “an executive department of the government of the United States” with the Attorney General as its head.


The agency is comprised of numerous divisions with the Civil Division and in some instances, the Criminal Division, overseeing investigations and prosecutions under the False Claims Act. The U.S. Attorneys Office of the federal district where the False Claims Act case is filed also plays a key role in False Claims Act enforcement.


Below are summaries of recent DOJ settlements or successful resolutions under the False Claims Act as well as other successful prosecutions for fraud and misconduct. If you believe you have information about fraud which could give  rise to a claim for a whistleblower reward, please contact us to speak with one of our experienced whistleblower attorneys.

				

			

			
						
					
			

	
		
		

			

				
				
September 4, 2015

				 Rick Brown, former president of Home Care America Inc., which managed the daily business operations of Medicall Physicians Group Ltd., was sentenced to 87 months in prison and to pay $1.3  million in restitution for his role in a $4 million health care fraud scheme.  Medicall is a physician practice that visited patients in their homes and prescribed home health care.  The evidence at trial showed that Brown and his co-conspirators routinely billed Medicare for overseeing patient care plans when in fact the doctors at Medicall rarely did so.  The evidence also showed that Brown and his co-conspirators billed Medicare for services never provided, including services rendered to patients who were deceased, services purportedly provided by medical professionals no longer employed by Medicall, and services purportedly provided by medical professionals who, based on billing records, worked over 24 hours per day. DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Home Health and Hospice, 
													  Medical Billing Fraud, 
													  Medicare, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 4, 2015

				 Columbus Regional Healthcare System and Dr. Andrew Pippas agreed to pay more than $25 million to resolve allegations they violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims in violation of the Stark Law.  The settlement also resolves allegations that Columbus Regional and Pippas submitted claims for payment to federal health care programs that misrepresented the level of services they provided.  According to the government, between 2003 and 2013, Columbus Regional provided excessive salary and directorship payments to Pippas that violated the Stark Law.  The government further alleged Columbus Regional submitted claims to federal health care programs for services at higher levels than supported by the documentation.  The allegations first arose in two whistleblower lawsuits filed former Columbus Regional executive Richard Barker under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act and the Georgia False Medicaid Claims Act.  Barker will receive a yet-to-be-determined whistleblower award.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Anti-Kickback and Stark, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  FCA State, 
													  Hospital Fraud, 
													  Medical Billing Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 4, 2015

				 Robert Wingfield and Bill Ma agreed to pay $385,000 and $50,000, respectively, to resolve allegations they violated the False Claims Act by engaging in a scheme to evade customs duties on imports of aluminum extrusions from China.  Wingfield was the US sales representative for Tai Shan Golden Gain Aluminum Products Ltd., the Chinese company that exported the aluminum extrusions in this case.  According to the government, Wingfield conspired with domestic importers to submit false information to the government to evade duties, and Ma later formed a company, Northeastern Aluminum Corp., to act as the importer of record for the goods in an attempt to shield the real importers from liability.  The allegations originated in a whistleblower lawsuit filed by James F. Valenti Jr. under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Valenti will receive a whistleblower award of approximately $79,000.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Customs Fraud, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 4, 2015

				 Walter Investment Management Corp. agreed to pay $29.63 million to resolve allegations that, through its subsidiaries, Reverse Mortgage Solution Inc., REO Management Solutions LLC and RMS Asset Management Solutions LLC, it violated the False Claims Act in connection with the subsidiaries’ participation in the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Home Equity Conversion Mortgages program, which insures “reverse” mortgage loans.  The allegations originated in a whistleblower lawsuit filed former RMS executive Matthew McDonald under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  McDonald will receive a whistleblower award of $5.15 million.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Financial and Investment Fraud, 
													  Financial Institution Fraud, 
													  Housing and Mortgage Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 3, 2015

				 Genzyme Corporation, a wholly-owned biotechnology subsidiary of French pharmaceutical company Sanofi, agreed to resolve criminal charges it violated the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act with regard to the unlawful distribution of the surgical device Seprafilm.  As part of the agreement, Genzyme agreed to admit to the facts underlying the charges and pay a monetary penalty of $32,587,439.  Whistleblower Insider				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Defective Products, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 3, 2015

				 Japanese automotive parts supplier NGK Insulators Ltd. agreed to plead guilty and pay a $65.3 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices and rig bids for ceramic substrates for automotive catalytic converters supplied to automobile manufacturers.  According to the felony charges, NGK conspired to rig bids for and fix the prices of catalytic converter substrates supplied to automobile manufacturers such as General Motors, Toyota, Nissan and certain of their subsidiaries and suppliers in the US and elsewhere.  NGK is also charged with obstructing justice by altering, destroying, mutilating and concealing documents with the intent of impeding the investigation into criminal antitrust violations in the automotive parts industry.  DOJ				 			
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 3, 2015

				 Japan-based NEC TOKIN Corp. agreed to plead guilty and pay a $13.8 million criminal fine for conspiring with competitors between 2002 and 2013 to fix prices for electrolytic capacitors sold to customers in the United States and elsewhere.  DOJ				 			
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 3, 2015

				 California-based Parsons Government Services Inc. agreed to pay $3.8 million to settle allegations it knowingly mischarged the Department of Energy for ineligible or inflated short-term and long-term employee relocation costs in connection with its contract on the DOE Salt Waste Processing Facility Project at the DOE Savannah River Site in Aiken, South Carolina.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Falsifying Invoices, 
													  Government Procurement Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 3, 2015

				 St. Joseph Hospice Entities, which consists of 13 hospice facilities in Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Alabama, and Patrick T. Mitchell, its majority owner and manager, agreed to pay $5,867,518 to resolve allegations they violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims for delivery of continuous home care hospice services to patients who were not entitled to receive them.  The allegations originated in a whistleblower lawsuit filed by 3 former employees of the company under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  They will receive a whistleblower award of roughly $1 million.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Home Health and Hospice, 
													  Medical Billing Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
September 1, 2015

				 Discount department store chain KMART Corp., which operates approximately 780 in-store pharmacies throughout the US, agreed to pay $1.4 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act by using drug manufacturer coupons and gasoline discounts as improper Medicare beneficiary inducements.  According to the government, Kmart improperly influenced the decisions of Medicare beneficiaries to bring their prescriptions to Kmart pharmacies by permitting them to use drug manufacturer coupons to reduce or eliminate prescription co-pays that they otherwise would be obligated to pay, and by also offering them varying levels of discounts on the purchase of gasoline at participating gas stations.  The allegations originated in a whistleblower lawsuit filed by former Kmart pharmacist Joshua Leighr under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Leighr will receive a whistleblower award of approximately $248,500.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Drug and DME Pricing, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


											

						

								

									
1
…
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
…
254
								

						

					

												
		
 
	
 

 



	


	

		

			

								
							
Learn about Whistleblower Rewards Programs
			
	
		

		
	
			

									

													False Claims Act					  							State & Local False Claims Acts					  							SEC Program					  							CFTC Program					  							IRS Program					  					

								See More			
	
		

	
		

	




	


	

		

			

				

					

						
Newsletter

						
Subscribe to receive email updates from the Constantine Cannon blogs

					
	
				
	
			
	
			
	
				
Sign up for: