Month: August 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA  James Thomas Bramlette, 42, of Salt Lake City, Utah, was sentenced to more than five years in federal prisons after pleading guilty to wire and tax fraud.

Evidence presented to the Court showed that Bramlette and his co-conspirators raised over $10 million from investors to develop Melrose Resort on Daufuskie Island, knowing the resort was in dire financial condition and subject to foreclosure by the original lender.  Bramlette and his co-conspirators repeatedly told investors their funds were being used to develop the resort when, in reality, the funds were used to pay the original lender not to foreclose, pay previous investors, and to pay employees, utilities, and taxes at the resort. Bramlette also used at least $1.8 million from investors for personal use and to live a lavish lifestyle.

“Mr. Bramlette’s prison sentence reflects the seriousness of his offense and the United States Attorney’s Office’s dedication to deterring fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs.  “This office will continue to prosecute those who cheat their fellow citizens and steal federal tax dollars.”

Concerning the wire fraud charge, in September 2016 Melrose Resort owed more than $500,000 in past due property taxes. The Beaufort County Treasurer’s Office notified Bramlette that the resort would be auctioned at a tax sale if the property taxes were not paid. In order to prevent the resort from being sold at the tax sale, Bramlette created a fake wire receipt that falsely represented that Melrose Resort had wired money to the Beaufort County Treasurer’s Office to pay the property taxes.

“Instead of being truthful about the continued financial problems at Melrose Resort, Bramlette defrauded investors and misled others who had interests in the property,” said Susan Ferensic, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Columbia Field Office. “With this sentence, he will pay the consequences in prison and will no longer be able to continue his lavish lifestyle at the expense of those who put their trust in him.”

As to tax fraud charge, Bramlette was required to collect and pay federal payroll taxes from the wages of all employees at Melrose Resort.  Bramlette collected payroll taxes from the employees, but he failed to turn over these taxes to the IRS.  In total, Bramlette failed to turn over to the IRS approximately $1 million in payroll taxes.

“Employment tax evasion results in the loss of tax revenue to the United States Government.” stated Donald “Trey” Eakins, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Special Agent in Charge, Charlotte Field Office. “Failure to pay over withheld taxes is a serious offense. Corporate executives have a responsibility to withhold income taxes for their employees and then remit those taxes to the IRS. IRS Criminal Investigation will vigorously pursue anyone who collects these taxes and uses the funds for their own personal gain.”

United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel sentenced Bramlette to 63 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the IRS. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Bower prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

NASHVILLE – A federal grand jury in Nashville on Monday returned a 40-count second superseding indictment, charging eight people in a Medicare and Medicaid fraud conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Mark H. Wildasin for the Middle District of Tennessee.

The indictment was unsealed earlier today, following the arrests of five of those charged.  Three others were arrested previously following earlier indictments. 

Fadel Alshalabi, 54, of Waxhaw, North Carolina, was originally charged in July 2021, with conspiracy and violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute for his role in orchestrating a fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid billing scheme related to genetic testing.  Alshalabi is the owner and Chief Executive Officer of a series of laboratories based in Spring Hill, Tennessee, called Crestar Labs, LLC (Crestar).  Monday’s second superseding indictment charges Alshalabi and seven others with health care fraud, conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and conspiracy to violate and violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute.  Alshalabi is also charged with money laundering. 

Others charged in the second superseding indictment are Edward D. Klapp, 63, of Jupiter, Florida, the former Vice President of Sales for Crestar; Melissa L. Chastain, 57, of Belton, South Carolina, the owner and Chief Executive Officer of Genetix LLC, a marketing company that contracted with Crestar; Roger Allison, 64, of Greenville, South Carolina, the President of Genetix; Dakota White, 28, of Easley, South Carolina, the former Director of Client Services and Vice President of Operations for Crestar; Robert Alan Richardson, 53, of Silver Spring, Maryland, a principal of Freedom Medical Labs, LLC, a marketing company that contracted with Crestar; Edward Burch, 53 of Rockville, Maryland, also a principal of Freedom Medical Labs, LLC; and Samuel Harris, 27, of Salt Lake City, Utah, the owner of Secure Health, also a marketing company that contracted with Crestar.  Edward Klapp and Lisa Chastain were originally charged in a first superseding indictment in October 2021.

The second superseding indictment alleges that the co-conspirators entered into sham contracts and paid kickbacks in exchange for genetic testing and urine analysis samples.  This included targeting and recruiting elderly patients who were federal health care program beneficiaries in order to obtain their genetic material for conducting genetic tests.  Marketers, who were not health care professionals, obtained swabs from the mouths of the patients at nursing homes, senior health fairs, and elsewhere. The tests were then purportedly approved by telemedicine doctors who did not engage in the treatment of the patients, and often did not even speak with the patients for whom they ordered tests.  Frequently, the patients or their treating physicians never received the results of the tests.  Alshalabi and the co-conspirators paid illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the doctor’s orders and tests, without regard to medical necessity.   During the period of 2016 to July 2021, Alshalabi and his co-conspirators billed Medicare and Medicaid over $150 million. 

If convicted, Alshalabi faces up to 10 years on the money laundering charges, and all defendants face up to 10 years in prison on the health care fraud and Anti-Kickback Statute charges, and up to 5 years on the charge of conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute. 

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the FBI, with the assistance of state partners including the Georgia Attorney General’s Office, Georgia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, as well as federal law enforcement partners and U.S. Attorney’s Offices in multiple districts, including in the Western District of North Carolina, Northern District of Georgia, District of South Carolina, and the Western District of Kentucky.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah K. Bogni and Robert S. Levine are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an accusation.  The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Samuel Sturkie Jackson, Jr., 51, of Pelion, was sentenced to four years in federal prison for defrauding individual investors out more than three million dollars.

“When taxpayers invest their hard-earned money in a business, they have every right to expect that no one will rob them,” said U.S. Attorney Adair F. Boroughs. “Samuel Jackson did exactly that, and stole millions. With the thorough work of our state and federal partners, this Office brought him to justice and he will spend several years in federal prison and has been ordered to make restitution to his victims.”

“The U.S. Secret Service remains focused on bringing those who commit financial crimes to justice,” said John Hirt, Special Agent in Charge of the Columbia Field Office for the U.S. Secret Service. “In this instance, Samuel Jackson turned his investors into victims, betraying their trust to carry out his own embezzlement scheme.  I commend our partners at SLED and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their efforts working alongside the U.S. Secret Service personnel that investigated this case in order to bring some justice to the victims in this scheme.”

“White-collar crime costs all of us,” said South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) Chief Mark Keel. “SLED agents and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively pursue those who seek to defraud others.”

Evidence presented to the Court showed that, while operating an Automated Transaction Machine (ATM) business called Little Giant ATM, Jackson solicited investments from individual investors and promised them a monthly rate of return.  The purpose of these investments was to load cash into the ATM machines, with anticipated profits from transaction fees.  However, from 2015 to 2019, Jackson converted money from the business and investor deposits to his own use, spending the money on farm equipment, cars, and trips to Las Vegas.  Through this scheme, Jackson defrauded Little Giant ATM investors of over $3.4 million.

United States District Judge Terry Wooten sentenced Jackson to 48 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision.  There is no parole in the federal system. Jackson was also ordered to pay $3.4 million in restitution.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and SLED. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Book Andrews prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

BOSTON – A Methuen man pleaded guilty on Aug. 3, 2022 in federal court in Boston to his involvement in a fentanyl distribution conspiracy.

Nino De Leon Guzman, a/k/a “Chino,” 31, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, two counts of distribution of fentanyl, one count of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl and one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencing for Oct. 27, 2022. Guzman was charged in June 2021 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2021.

From October 2020 through in or about June 2021, undercover law enforcement agents purchased fentanyl from Guzman and his associated drug trafficking organization on nine separate occasions in the Lawrence and Methuen area. At the time of his arrest on June 23, 2021, Guzman was found in possession of fentanyl and the cell phone undercover agents used to call him for fentanyl deals. A subsequent search of Guzman’s residence in Methuen resulted in the recovery of a kilogram brick of fentanyl, a blender containing multiple bags of fentanyl, a drug ledger, clothing he had worn in prior drug transactions and a sock in a nightstand containing $2,500 cash in drug proceeds.

“Drug traffickers who pedal the poison that is fentanyl will be aggressively prosecuted by our office,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “The quantities at issue in this prosecution put real lives at risk and inflict a huge amount of harm on the hardworking people of Lawrence and Methuen who want to raise their families in communities free from drug trafficking and violence.”

“Fentanyl is causing tremendous damage to the state of Massachusetts,” Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Boston Field Division. “This court proceeding should act as a warning to those traffickers who are distributing this poison in order to profit and destroy people’s lives. DEA’s top priority is combatting the opioid epidemic by working with our local, county, state and federal partners to bring to justice anyone who distributes this deadly drug.”

The charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl each provide for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of up to $10 million. The charges of distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl each provide for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $5 million. The charge of distribution of fentanyl provides for up to 20 years in prison, at least three years and up to a lifetime of supervised release and a fine of $1 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Levy and DEA SAC Boyle made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey E. Weinstein of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.