COVID-19

https://youtu.be/67vPwstBYuo

A Louisiana man was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for money laundering in connection with a fraudulent scheme to obtain more than $1.1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program loans. “The significant sentence handed down today demonstrates that those who steal from COVID-19 relief programs for personal gain will be prosecuted...

A federal jury convicted a California man yesterday for his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare by billing $2.8 million for hospice services that patients did not need. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Dr. John Thropay, 74, of Arcadia, was the medical director of several hospice companies, including Blue Sky Hospice Inc. located in Van...

A federal jury in Detroit convicted a Michigan man today for a wire fraud and money laundering scheme to obtain more than $4.1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. According to court documents and evidence presented...

A California man pleaded guilty this week in the Central District of California to stealing government funds designed to aid medical providers in the treatment of patients suffering from COVID-19 and using them for his own personal benefit. According to court documents, Grigor Garibyan, 36, of North Hollywood, admitted that he owned GMA Home Health Inc. (GMA), a home health...

A federal jury convicted a New York man this week in an over $600 million health care fraud, wire fraud, and identity theft scheme. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Mathew James, 54, of East Northport, operated a medical billing company that billed for procedures that were either more serious or entirely different than those James’ doctor-clients...

A federal jury convicted a California man for submitting fraudulent applications seeking money from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), submitting false statements to a financial institution, and money laundering. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Robert Benlevi, 53, of Encino, submitted 27 PPP loan applications to four banks between April and June 2020 on behalf of eight...

SEC Fines The Cheesecake Manufacturing unit for Deceptive Buyers on COVID-19 Enterprise Influence The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission stated on Friday it had fined restaurant chain The Cheesecake Manufacturing unit $125,000 to settle costs that it misled buyers in regards to the impression of the pandemic on its enterprise, the primary such case introduced by the regulator. In March 23...

California heads into new stay-at-home order as COVID-19 cases overwhelm hospitals A stay-at-home order will go into effect in Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley late Sunday, as COVID-19 cases soar and capacity at hospital intensive care units continues to drop. The regions will implement the order Sunday at 11:59 p.m. Bars, wineries and personal-care services must close; restaurants must...

Criminal Charges Brought Against Owners and Executives of Medical Businesses, Physicians, Marketers, and Manufacturers of Fake COVID-19 Vaccination Record Cards with Losses Exceeding $149 Million The Department of Justice today announced criminal charges against 21 defendants in nine federal districts across the United States for their alleged participation in various health care related fraud schemes that exploited the COVID-19 pandemic....