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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.

				

			

			
						
					
			

	
		
		

			

				
				
April 27, 2022

				 The owner and operator of two Texas-based adult day care centers has been sentenced to 5 years in prison and ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution after she was found to have billed the Texas Medicaid Program for items and services not provided.  Scherry Lynn Moses ran Scherry’s Adult Day Activity Center and New Creation Residential Care Homes, a room and board for Social Security recipients, but inconsistently provided boarders with basic needs.  USAO WDTX				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Criminal Proceedings, 
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Medicaid, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 27, 2022

				 Dr. Josef Schenker and his urgent care facilities, Josef Schenker, M.D., P.C., and Care Partners Medical Management, LLC will pay $564,217.70 for violations of the False Claims Act, by submitting up-coded claims to Medicare related to administration of the COVID-19 vaccine. Schenker and the two facilities provided higher-level CPT codes for services not actually provided, charging, e.g., for an office visit or exam when the patient only actually received a vaccine or a COVID test. EDNY				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Medical Billing Fraud, 
													  Medicare, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
													  Provider Fraud, 
													  Upcoding, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 26, 2022

				 A former pharmacist in Mississippi named Mitchell Barrett has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay restitution as well as forfeit all assets stemming from a $180 million healthcare fraud scheme against TRICARE and other health benefit programs.  Barrett had adjusted prescription formulas to ensure the highest possible reimbursement, solicited recruiters to procure prescriptions for expensive compounded drugs, paid those recruiters a commission based on reimbursements from TRICARE, routinely waived copayments required to be paid by TRICARE beneficiaries, and took steps to disguise the waived payments.  DOJ				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Compounding Pharmacy Fraud, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Lack of Medical Necessity, 
													  Other Government Health Programs, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 25, 2022

				 David H. Wright, former general manager of the LA Department of Water and Power, will spend 72 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of bribery. Wright accepted bribes from a lawyer to secure a $30 million no-bid contract for the lawyer’s company, Aventador Utility Services LLC, and thereafter accepted the position of CEO after he retired from LADWP. While still in his official capacity at LADWP, he lobbied the board to vote in favor of Aventador’s contract. CDCA				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Bribery and Bid-Rigging, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 21, 2022

				 Susan H. Poon, 57, will spend 70 months in federal prison, and will pay nearly $1.4 million in restitution for a scheme spanning over 3 years, and which resulted in approximately $2.2 million in fraudulent billings. Poon submitted prescriptions both with PII obtained at health fairs held by Costco and UPS, and by soliciting information from actual patients about their dependents—dependents whom Poon never saw or treated. Poon used the stolen PII to submit fraudulent durable medical equipment prescriptions to a DME manufacturer, who then unknowingly submitted false claims for reimbursement to a health insurer. In addition to the prison sentence and the owed restitution, Poon’s chiropractic license was revoked in 2019. USAO CDCA				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Medicaid, 
													  Medical Billing Fraud, 
													  Medical Devices and DME, 
													  Medicare, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 20, 2022

				 Waste management company Stericycle Inc. agreed to pay a total of $84 million and enter into a deferred prosecution agreement admitting to the payment of millions of dollars in bribes to government officials in Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina in order to obtain and retain business and to secure improper advantages in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.  The company’s foreign subsidiaries maintained false records to conceal the bribes, which were typically paid in cash and recorded on spreadsheets using code words and euphemisms, including describing the payments made in Argentina as “alfajores.”  Stericycle’s total payment consists of a $28 million payment to resolve an investigation by the SEC, a $52.5 million criminal penalty, and $9.3 million to resolve investigations by the Controladoria-Geral da União (CGU) and the Advocacia-Geral de União (Attorney General’s Office) in Brazil, part of which will be credited to reduce the criminal penalty.  DOJ; SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Criminal Proceedings, 
													  FCPA, 
													  Financial and Investment Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 19, 2022

				 John Rick Winer, 68, will spend 262 months in federal prison and pay $11 million in restitution for conspiring to defraud investors via a scheme spanning several US states. Winer, with his co-conspirators, solicited millions from donors for nonexistent charitable or humanitarian projects, and then laundered the proceeds. The conspirators utilized numerous fake entities, including one “House of Winer” to further the fraud. Winer is required to forfeit a residence in Norway, a luxury vehicle, approximately $4 million in silver coins, and a laptop. Upon completion of his prison term, Winer will spend 3 years under supervised release. USAO SD				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Financial and Investment Fraud, 
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Money Laundering, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 13, 2022

				 Pharmacy owner Aleah Mohammed was sentenced to 78 months in prison for stealing more than $6.5 million from the government via her prescription fraud on Medicare and Medicaid drug plans. Mohammad submitted claims for drugs that weren’t dispensed, weren’t prescribed as claimed, were not medically necessary, or that were dispensed while the pharmacy was no longer registered with the State of New York. The proceeds were used by Mohammed and her family members to buy luxury vehicles, jewelry, and properties in Queens and Pocono Pines, Pennsylvania. USAO EDNY				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Improper Medical Personnel, 
													  Medicaid, 
													  Medicare, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 13, 2022

				 A number of anesthesia entities owned and operated by Care Plus Management, LLC (Care Plus), which itself is owned and operated by doctors Paul D. Weir and John R. Morgan, have agreed to pay $7.2 million to resolve allegations of violating the Anti-Kickback Statute and False Claims Act.  A qui tam suit by whistleblower Robert Douglas had alleged that between 2012 and 2016, Care Plus entered into illegal revenue-sharing arrangements with physicians in exchange for patient referrals.  For his contributions to a successful enforcement action, Douglas will receive a $1.3 million share of the settlement.  USAO NDGA				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Anti-Kickback and Stark, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Healthcare Fraud, 
													  Provider Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 12, 2022

				 Robert A. Karmann, a CPA and former CFO of DC Solar, was sentenced to 6 years in prison and ordered to pay $624 million for his role in perpetrating a Ponzi-style scheme, by taking new investor money to pay older investors, and deploying circular transactions to cover up their illicit behavior. DC Solar manufactured trailer-mounted solar generators and marketed them as having extensive third-party lease demand. Karmann and his co-conspirators offered falsified financial statements and operation reports and provided fabricated revenue summaries to victims of the scheme. Karmann oversaw the hidden transfers of funds, gave false information to investor representatives, and instructed a subordinate to “make it up” when asked by a customer for reports on the location of their solar generators. USAO EDCA				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Accounting Fraud, 
													  Financial and Investment Fraud, 
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Ponzi Schemes, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


											

						

								

									
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