Month: May 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Heart Hospital South, LLC (“OHHS”), has paid $1,151,770.50 to settle civil claims stemming from allegations it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicare, announced United States Attorney Robert J. Troester.

OHHS is an Oklahoma limited liability company that owns and operates the Oklahoma Heart Hospital South, which is an acute care hospital located in Oklahoma City.  Following an internal review and audit, OHHS discovered irregularities regarding its billing of certain services, and proactively contacted the United States to self-disclose the issues.  Thereafter, the United States investigated the disclosures and issues raised by OHHS.  Throughout the investigation, and to its credit, OHHS cooperated with the United States Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General in the investigation. 

The voluntary disclosure and investigation revealed that from June 1, 2013, through May 31, 2019, OHHS submitted claims to Medicare for Intensive Cardiac Rehabilitation (“ICR”) services provided to Medicare beneficiaries.  Before billing Medicare for these services, OHHS was required to have a physician complete and sign an individualized treatment plan (“ITP”) for the patient.  If the patient was going to receive ICR for longer than 30 days, a physician must complete and sign updates to the ITP every 30 days thereafter.  The United States alleges that claims for ICR services submitted by OHHS to Medicare for payment violated the False Claims Act because a physician did not complete and/or sign ITPs and/or ITP updates for certain Medicare beneficiaries. 

To resolve the claims, OHHS agreed to pay $1,151,770.50 to the United States.  In reaching this settlement, OHHS did not admit liability, and the government did not make any concessions about the legitimacy of the claims.  The agreement allows the parties to avoid the delay, expense, inconvenience, and uncertainty involved in litigating the case.

This case was investigated by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ronald R. Gallegos and Scott Maule prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

DESTINE CALDERON, 27, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 97 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his participation in a Bridgeport gang, and his role in a gang-related shooting that occurred in front of a state courthouse in Bridgeport in January 2020.

Today’s announcement was made by Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut; Joseph T. Corradino, State’s Attorney for the Fairfield Judicial District; Bridgeport Acting Police Chief Rebeca Garcia; James Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge, ATF Boston Field Division; David Sundberg, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, and Acting U.S. Marshal Lawrence Bobnick.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service and Bridgeport Police have been investigating multiple Bridgeport-based gangs whose members are involved in narcotics trafficking, murder and other acts of violence.  Calderon has been a member of the “Greene Homes Boyz” (“GHB/Hotz”), a gang based in the Charles F. Greene Homes Housing Complex in Bridgeport’s North End, whose members and associates distributed heroin, crack cocaine, marijuana and Percocet pills; committed numerous acts of violence against rival gang members and other individuals, and celebrated their criminal conduct on social media websites such as Facebook and YouTube.  GHB/Hotz members and associates also committed acts of intimidation and made threats to deter potential witnesses to their crimes and to protect gang members and associates from detection and prosecution by law enforcement authorities.  From approximately 2017 until August 2020, GHB/Hotz members were aligned with members of the “Original North End” (“O.N.E.”), a gang based in the Trumbull Gardens area of Bridgeport, against rival groups in Bridgeport, including the East End, East Side and PT Barnum gangs, as well as 150, which is a geographic gang based on the West Side of Bridgeport.

On October 1, 2020, Calderon pleaded guilty pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity and admitted that he participated in gang-related drug trafficking, and that he was aware of the planning and was present in a vehicle when GHB/Hotz and O.N.E. members attempted to kill members and associates of the East End gang in a brazen afternoon shooting in front of a Bridgeport courthouse on January 27, 2020.  At 12:11 p.m. on that date, Bridgeport Police responded to the area of 172 Golden Hill Street in Bridgeport after a Shot Spotter activation detected approximately 20 shots being fired in front of the state courthouse located there.  Upon arrival, investigators discovered that four victims had been shot while sitting inside a black Chevrolet Impala.  One victim was shot in the side of his chest and was left paralyzed and a second victim sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his back, shoulder and wrist.  The victims’ vehicle had approximately 23 entry bullet holes in the driver’s side and windshield area.

Calderon also appears in YouTube videos and in social media posts promoting the gang.

Calderon has been detained since August 6, 2020.

This investigation is being conducted by ATF, the FBI’s Safe Streets and Violent Crimes Task Forces, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, Bridgeport Police Department, Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport State’s Attorney’s Office, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory and the Stratford and Naugatuck Police Departments.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale, Jocelyn C. Kaoutzanis, Stephanie T. Levick and Karen L. Peck.

This prosecution is a part of the Justice’s Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), Project Longevity and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) programs.

PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

Project Longevity is a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities.  Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it.  If a group member elects to engage in gun violence, the focused attention of federal, state and local law enforcement will be directed at that entire group.

OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

NEWARK, N.J. – A New York doctor today admitted using his medical license – and allowing others to use his medical license – to purchase prescription oncology medications under false pretenses for the purpose of selling them for profit, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

Jon Paul Dadaian, 53, of New York, a board-certified anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton to an information charging him with unlawfully selling prescription cancer medication, which had been previously purchased using his medical license and under the representation that such medication was to be used to treat his patients.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

While operating his medical practice in Elmwood, New Jersey, Dadaian befriended two individuals who owned and operated two businesses that were wholesale distributors of prescription drugs. At the request of these individuals, and in return for approximately $130,500 in payments, Dadaian used his medical license – and allowed others to use it – to purchase expensive prescription drugs, primarily, cold-chain biologic infusion medications that typically are used to treat cancers, macular degeneration, and autoimmune diseases. By recruiting and using Dadaian and his medical license to purchase the drugs, the two individuals were able to obtain prescription drugs from the pharmaceutical manufacturers’ authorized distributors that they would not otherwise have been permitted to purchase. They were then able to sell them at a profit through their two businesses. By using Dadaian and his medical license to purchase their prescription drugs, these two individuals also obtained discounted community physician pricing for the prescription drugs with respect to some of the drug purchases. The discounted community physician pricing was based upon specialized discounts that the pharmaceutical manufacturers only offered to treating physicians and others similarly situated. The two individuals and their businesses would not have been qualified to receive this favorable pricing if they had attempted to purchase the prescription drugs directly from the pharmaceutical manufacturers.

In purchasing the drugs, Dadaian and the two individuals made numerous false and misleading representations to the pharmaceutical manufacturers and authorized distributors, including that Dadaian purchased the drugs to use to treat his patients, and that the drugs would not be resold or redistributed. In actuality, none of the drugs were administered to Dadaian’s patients, but were ultimately sold to customers of the two businesses for a profit. The scheme ran from June 2012 through April 2018, during which tens of millions in prescription drugs were purchased in Dadaian’s name and using his medical license.

The sale of prescription drugs purchased by a healthcare entity is punishable by a maximum of three years in prison and a $10,000 fine. In his plea agreement, Dadaian also agreed to make restitution for the full amount of any loss resulting from his offense. Sentencing for Dadaian is scheduled for Sept. 20, 2022.

U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations New York Field Office, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Brian G. McClune; and special agents of U.S. Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas Mahoney, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Diana Vondra Carrig and Sara Aliya Aliabadi of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced that Scott Matthew Yotka (47, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to two counts of producing photos and a video depicting himself while he sexually abused two young children. Yotka faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years, and up to 60 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervised release. Yotka was arrested on September 17, 2021, and has been detained since that time. His sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.

According to court documents, on September 15, 2021, Yotka, using the name “Scottnjax44,” engaged in online private conversation using a particular social media application (app) with an undercover FBI task force officer in Washington, D.C. Yotka discussed his ongoing sexual exploitation of children in graphic detail, stated that he had access to two young children, and further that he enjoyed molesting them. Yotka sent the undercover officer several photos and a video depicting two prepubescent children being sexually abused by Yotka. The FBI traced this online messaging activity to Yotka’s residence and determined that the same “Scottnjax44” user account was also accessed from the offices of the City of Jacksonville located in the Ed Ball Building in downtown Jacksonville. FBI agents coordinated with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) and confirmed that Yotka was employed by JSO as a Police Emergency Communications Officer. On September 16, 2021, the FBI obtained a federal search warrant for Yotka’s residence.

During the early morning of September 17, 2021, the FBI, assisted by JSO, executed the search warrant and made contact with Yotka. During an interview, Yotka confirmed that he was the administrator of a chat room on the social media app for individuals interested in “incest fetishes, little kid things, [and] animal things.” Yotka admitted sending pornographic pictures of young children to another app user. He also admitted taking photos of these children as he molested them and used a particular object to sexually abuse them. Yotka stated “I know what I did” and “I’m not proud of what I did.” An FBI forensic examiner was able to recover from Yotka’s cellphone seven photos and a video depicting Yotka sexually abusing these two children.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville and Washington, D.C. and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

GAINESVILLE, Ga. – Othon Marban, Sr., and Othon Marban, Jr., have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer firearms to an out-of-state resident and making false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer, in connection with their attempted trafficking of approximately 50 guns to Mexico.                                           

“The defendants’ thwarted attempt to traffic guns to Mexico highlights the determination of our office and our law enforcement partners to stop the illegal gun trade both within and outside our district,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. “I commend our federal, state and local law enforcement for remaining vigilant and protecting our communities.”

“Stopping the trafficking of illegal guns saves lives and reduces crime, I’m pleased that we were able to stop this scheme to illegally export guns to Mexico,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Cases like this highlight the great results that can be achieved when agencies work together to protect our communities here and abroad.”

“This case is a perfect example of how our agencies work in concert to keep our communities safe,” said Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch. “I applaud our deputies for being alert as they were patrolling I-985, which is the busiest primary corridor in our county. They saw a problem with a basic traffic violation and pulled over the offender. As a result, we were able to get dozens of illegal weapons off our streets. I’m proud of everyone involved.”

According to U.S. Attorney Buchanan, the charges and other information presented in court: On the morning of December 3, 2021, Hall County Sheriff’s Office deputies stopped a truck travelling on I-985 South for traffic violations. Investigators recovered 51 guns wrapped in cellophane during a search of the vehicle. Marban, Sr. and Marban, Jr. admitted that they were en route to Mexico with the firearms. Further investigation of the defendants revealed that they previously purchased additional guns and that they traveled to Mexico earlier in 2021.

Othon Marban, Sr., 56, of Gainesville, Georgia, pleaded guilty on May 9, 2022, and Othon Marban, Jr., 20, also of Gainesville, Georgia, pleaded guilty on May 16, 2022.  Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.  

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Hall County Sheriff’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Keen is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). In keeping with the Attorney General’s mission to reduce violent crime, the Northern District of Georgia’s PSN program focuses on prosecuting those individuals who most significantly drive violence in our communities, and supports and fosters partnerships between law enforcement and schools, the faith community, and local community leaders to prevent and deter future criminal conduct.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016.  The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.