Employees of the for-profit Education Management Corp. say that the aggressive recruiting tactics that have resulted in multiple False Claims Act allegations against it began when Goldman Sachs became one of the partners who purchased the company. According to these employees, Goldman fired existing managers and encouraged all recruiters to enroll students at all costs,…
BNY Mellon Sued for Defrauding Customers
Federal, state, and local lawsuits were initiated in New York last week alleging that BNY Mellon violated the federal and New York False Claims Acts by defrauding customers. New York State also filed allegations under the Martin Act, which allows New York to recover money on behalf of investors nationwide for securities violations without having…
Bailout Recipients Face Fraud Charges
United Commercial Bank, the first recipient of bailout funds from the Troubled Asset Release Program to declare bankruptcy, now also becomes the first recipient whose executives will face criminal charges in connection with that program. United Commercial Bank’s CEO Thomas Wu and vice presidents Ebrahim Shabudin and Thomas Yu have all been charged by the…
Julius Baer Bankers Charged with Facilitating Offshore Accounts
The Department of Justice filed charges against two client advisers at Julius Baer Group Ltd., alleging that they conspired with more than 180 American clients to hide over $600 million in assets from the IRS. According to the indictment, Daniela Casadei and Fabio Frazzetto helped clients set up accounts under names such as “Hydrangea” or…
Mortgage Fraud Settlement Nears, Many States Have Concerns
The federal government and multiple state governments are reportedly closer to reaching a settlement with the five largest banks who allegedly engaged in fraudulent mortgage lending practices. Under the agreement, officials anticipate that Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Ally Financial will help fund loan modifications for homeowners and will agree…
Cephalon Faces Federal Inquiries on Each of Its Four Drugs
Cephalon, the manufacturer of sleep disorder medications Nuvigil and Provigil, lymphocytic leukemia drug Treanda, and cancer pain medication Fentora is under investigation by three separate federal law enforcement agencies–the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Postal Service, respectively. Cephalon remains subject to a five year Corporate Integrity Agreement it signed in…
SEC Increases Efforts, Still Faces Problems
SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro vowed to be tougher on enforcement when she first took office. Since she took the reins at the SEC in 2008, the Commission has adopted several reforms in order to ramp up enforcement efforts, including reorganizing its enforcement staff, lowering internal hurdles to its police work, and creating a centralized database…
Columbia University, New York Presbyterian Settle FCA Suits
Columbia University, New York Presbyterian Hospital, and Dr. Erik Goluboff have settled a False Claims Act case which alleged that Dr. Goluboff, while employed at New York Presbyterian and later at Columbia University, filed false claims to Medicare for urological procedures and diagnostic tests that were medically unnecessary. According to the Complaint, Dr. Goluboff billed…
Hospital Director Lined Pockets with Medicaid Money, Faces 20 Years in Jail
The former director of a Detroit hospital was convicted of twenty-five counts of Medicaid fraud and one count of racketeering for filing false claims to Medicaid, defrauding the state and federal governments of over $3.3 million. Deborah D’Anna, Palmer Health Center’s former director, personally billed Medicaid for millions of dollars of services that were never…
Duran Gets 50 Years For Medicare Fraud Scheme
Larry Duran, a health care executive who defrauded Medicare of hundreds of millions of dollars while lobbying the government to ease Medicare restrictions on mental health centers, received a record-breaking fifty year prison sentence for his role in orchestrating the fraud. Read the entire article, “Health executive lobbied in Washington to advance Medicare fraud scheme”