Whistleblower News From The Inside -- November 9, 2017

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team

Transportation company settles FCA suit for $4.4M—Mercer Transportation Company has settled allegations that it bribed officials at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia in exchange for contract awards that the company would not have otherwise received. The case was brought by a whistleblower, who will receive an $814K award. USAO Middle District of Georgia

New study shows Wisconsin has lost millions by repealing its state FCA—The study estimates that Wisconsin has lost over $11M in Medicaid fraud settlements alone by repealing its state FCA in 2015. Wisconsin is the only state to ever repeal its FCA. The repeal was pushed by business interests who called relators “bounty hunters,” although over 80% of Medicaid fraud cases are brought by whistleblowers, and not directly by the government. Becker’s Hospital Review

Former Secret Service agent laundered money, allegedly stole US government Bitcoin—Former special agent Shaun W. Bridges, previously involved in Baltimore Silk Road Task Force investigations, was sentenced to 24 months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of money laundering; Bridges also faces new charges related to another theft of approximately 1,600 Bitcoin from a digital wallet belonging to the US government. DOJ