Whistleblower News From The Inside — April 15, 2016
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
SEC alleges ‘Ponzi-like’ scheme by ski resort involving EB-5 visa program — The SEC filed a civil lawsuit alleging a “massive eight-year fraudulent scheme” involving a series of real-estate developments by Jay Peak ski resort in Vermont alleging the owner and chief executive of the resort “systematically looted” more than $50 million raised from dozens of foreign investors. WSJ
Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approves FBI whistleblower protections — The Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously passed the FBI Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2015 which upgrades one of the least effective whistleblower policies in the U.S. Code and ensures that the nation’s top law enforcement agency is held accountable to the rule of law. GAP
New York suburb, officials charged in landmark bond fraud case — An elected official of a New York City suburb was charged with defrauding investors who helped finance a controversial minor league baseball stadium, in what authorities called the first criminal securities fraud prosecution involving municipal bonds. Reuters
Boston Medical Center to pay $1.1M to settle fraud, whistleblower allegations — Boston Medical Center has agreed to pay $1.1 million to settle allegations that it improperly billed Medicare and Medicaid for more units of an expensive cancer drug, called Rituxan, than it had infused in its patients. Boston Business Journal
Whistleblowers fear prosecution under new European Trade Secrets law — The aim of the Trade Secrets Protection Act is to protect European companies from corporate spying by their rivals in other parts of the world — but critics say journalists and whistleblowers could be criminalized if they publish information that companies deem to be secret. BBC
American company lost $100 million to email fraud — An unidentified American company was defrauded last year out of nearly $100 million by individuals who created a fake email address in order to pose as one of its legitimate vendors. Reuters