Tag: Collusion

Ohio Mother And Daughter Sentenced For Embezzling $200k From Dentist

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XENIA — A Xenia mother and her daughter were sentenced on Thursday to four years in prison for embezzling money over a five- year-period from a local dental surgeon for whom they worked.

However, Judge Stephen Wolaver agreed to delay the start of prison terms for Alberta Faye Clark, 68, and Tammie L. Creamer, 43, until Feb. 8. Defense lawyers indicated both hoped to win their release after six months behind bars.

Still unresolved is how much Clark and Creamer owe in restitution. The charges accused them of stealing more than $160,000. Wolaver ruled this should be settled in a lawsuit filed by Dr. Clarence L. Thomas III — Clark’s and Creamer’s employer until August 2005.

Thomas claimed Clark and Creamer “used the positions of trust that they held to siphon” the money from his business accounts.

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South Carolina Collusive Fraud: Dental Employee And SEVEN Other Conspirators Plead Guilty To Stealing 368K

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A Sumter woman and a Santee woman are among the eight who recently plead guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud that bilked Blue Cross Blue Shield out of $368,000.

Lorraine Porcher, 46, of Sumter, and Kimberly Donaldson Broughton, 33, of Santee, reportedly worked with Malentha Robinson-Taylor, 45, of Cordova, to file false insurance claims out of an Orangeburg-based dentist office.

“The dentist realized it,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Winston David Holliday Jr. “Malentha was out, and he noticed he was getting explanation of benefits for patients he didn’t remember seeing.”

The way the scheme worked is that Robinson-Taylor identified some friends with state insurance through Blue Cross Blue Shield, he said. Because the doctor she worked for is not a network provider for those policies, the individual is expected to pay out of pocket and then receive a check to apply toward that expense.

“But they never had dental services,” Holliday said. “Malentha made it up. So say she said (you) had wisdom teeth removed. You get a $2,000 check in the mail, and you say ‘thank you. Here’s your cut.’”

The claims submitted totaled about $800,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Friday news release.

This is not an unusual scheme, Holliday said.

“Doctors’ offices in particular are susceptible if there are not checks and balances over access to billing,” he said.

The maximum penalty for conspiracy to commit mail fraud is imprisonment for 20 years and/or a fine of $250,000. U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson Jr. of Columbia accepted the guilty pleas and will impose sentences after he has reviewed the pre-sentence reports prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

“It’s a formula that takes into account factors such as the amount lost and criminal history,” Holliday said. “It’s not as though the judge is sitting there deciding between zero and 20 years. It’s much more academic.”

The others involved in this case are: R.L. Robinson-Taylor, 46, of Cordova; Robert Green, 55, of Orangeburg; Pamela Richardson, 41, of Florence; Latisha Brown, 36, of Lake City; and Cheryl Frazier, 42, of Orangeburg.

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Content retrieved from http://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article13827674.html#!
 
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Eight Plead Guilty in Fraud Scheme Involving Blue Cross Blue Shield

U.S. Attorney’s OfficeOctober 25, 2013
  • District of South Carolina(803) 929-3000
 

COLUMBIA, SC—United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Malentha Robinson-Taylor, age 45, of Cordova, South Carolina; R. L. Robinson-Taylor, age 46, also of Cordova; Robert Green, age 55, of Orangeburg; Kimberly Donaldson Broughton, age 33, of Santee; Pamela Richardson, age 41, of Florence; Latisha Brown, age 36, of Lake City; Cheryl Frazier, age 42, of Orangeburg; and Lorraine Porcher, age 46, of Sumter, each have entered a guilty plea in federal court in Columbia to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349. United States District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr. of Columbia accepted the guilty pleas and will impose their sentences after he has reviewed the presentence reports, which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Malentha Robinson-Taylor worked for an Orangeburg-based dentist. She and her husband, R. L. Robinson-Taylor, recruited individuals who supplied their Blue Cross Blue Shield policy numbers to them. Ms. Robinson-Taylor then submitted claims as though these individuals had been seen by her dentist employer, even though they had not. When checks were sent directly to the beneficiaries for services that had not been performed, they split the proceeds with the Robinson-Taylors. The other six individuals who pled guilty were all beneficiaries who received checks as part of the fraud scheme. The total claims submitted totaled approximately $800,000. The amount paid was around $368,000.

Mr. Nettles stated the maximum penalty for conspiracy to commit mail fraud is imprisonment for 20 years and/or a fine of $250,000.

The case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Winston David Holliday, Jr. of Columbia is prosecuting the case.

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Content retrieved from https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/columbia/press-releases/2013/eight-plead-guilty-in-fraud-scheme-involving-blue-cross-blue-shield

Two Employees Accused Of Embezzling $800k From Washington Dentist

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Dentist claims duo stole $800,000

OLYMPIA — An Olympia dentist is suing a receptionist and a bookkeeper who used to work for him, alleging that they stole an estimated $800,000 from his practice. A separate criminal investigation involves $80,000 in possible embezzlement, but prosecutors say that number could grow much higher.

Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Wheeler confirmed Wednesday that there is a criminal investigation of alleged embezzlement from Dr. Donald Niemann’s dental practice. The two former employees are identified in Niemann’s lawsuit as Bobbi Current, 50, and Kelli Flynn, 44.

Case referred

The case has been referred to the prosecuting attorney’s office, but criminal charges have yet to be filed, Wheeler said.

Current worked as a receptionist at Niemann’s dental practice from 1994 to 2007, and Flynn worked as a bookkeeper there from 1996 to 2006, according to Niemann’s suit.

Current could not be reached for comment Wednesday night. Flynn said in a phone interview Wednesday that she used to work for Niemann but left to take another job. She said she wasn’t aware of any investigation. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Flynn said. “I guess I would have no comment whatsoever.”

Practice since 1975

Niemann has had a dental practice in Olympia since 1975. He said he thinks the embezzlement started around 2000. He said he learned of it through an audit.

Niemann said the alleged embezzlement is “deeply disappointing” and declined further comment.

According to the suit, Current and Flynn took money from Niemann’s practice and “made efforts to disguise and hide these actions from plaintiffs.”

This year, a local couple, Lori and Michael Doughty, pleaded guilty to multiple felonies after they were accused of embezzling about $1.9 million from Fisher Jones Family Dentistry in Olympia. Lori Doughty was sentenced to 10 years in prison, and Michael Doughty was sentenced to 17 months. Both were ordered to pay restitution.

People who work in offices where there are a large number of financial transactions, such as dental offices, might think they can embezzle without being caught, Wheeler said.

Niemann’s lawsuit seeks repayment of funds.

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Content retrieved from The Olympian, September 12, 2007

3 Charged In Plot To Embezzle Money From California Dentist And Launder At Bingo Hall

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Two men and a woman embezzled $309,000 over three years in a scheme involving a church bingo hall, according to charges filed by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.

Deputy District Attorney Julie Sousa said 56-year-old Nadine Marcias illegally signed checks sent to her employer, a dentist, and cashed those checks at the church bingo hall where she played Flash, an electronic bingo game. Two people at the bingo hall took perhaps 10 percent of the check and gave the balance to Marcias, Sousa said.

The hall required Marcias to spend half of the balance on bingo and she kept the rest for herself. The two suspects from the bingo hall allegedly involved in the scheme were 77-year-old Tusameme “Sal” Sinapati Salanoa and 63-year-old Atonio “Tony” Leulu. “It was their own side deal,” Sousa said. The dentist noticed a series of Denti-Cal checks missing, which led to the discovery of the scheme.

Prosecutors have charged Marcias with felony employee embezzlement and check forgery. She surrendered Thursday. Prosecutors have charged Salanoa and Leulu with forgery. Prosecutors said the three could spend as much as five years in prison.

The arraignment for Salanoa and Leulu is set for June 11 at the Hall of Justice and the arraignment for Marcias is set for July 6. Sousa said the dentist is entitled to restitution under the state’s bill of rights for victims, and the church might reimburse him. “We must order restitution,” Sousa said. “But the flip side of that is that you cannot get blood from a stone.”

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Content retrieved from //www.fugitive.com/2015/06/06/3-charged-in-alleged-plot-to-embezzle-money-from-dentist-to-play-bingo/

Two Alberta Dental Clinic Employees Charged With Fraud

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Joanna Ridley
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Medicine Hat, AB: Following a seven month long investigation, the Medicine Hat Police Service Major Crimes Section has charged two Medicine Hat residents with Fraud Over $5000. The charges are in relation to a complaint received from the Crestwood Dental Clinic. Both of the individuals charged were employees at the clinic during time of the fraud which took place in 2014 and amounted to losses in excess of $80,000. The funds were not recovered. Matthew Ridley, age 43, has been charged with three counts of Fraud Over $5000 and appeared in court on November 4, 2015. Joanna Ridley, age 41, has been charged with one count of Fraud Over $5000 and is due to appear in court November 25, 2015. The victim of the fraud in this file was the Crestwood Dental Clinic business and not the individual patients of the clinic.

Update: 10/20/2016

Former dental employees will go to fraud trial in April The trial for two former employees of a city dental clinic facing serious fraud charges has been set for early next year. The four-day trial for Matthew and Joanna Ridley was set Tuesday at the Medicine Hat Courthouse for April 10-13.

Two Employees In New Jersey Dental Office Plead Guilty In Theft Of $200,000

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arlene-marchese-karen-wright Two former employees of a Haledon dental office admitted on Monday that they stole $200,000 from their employer. Arlene Marchese, 35, of Wayne, and Karen Wright, 44, of Wyckoff, worked at Belmont Dental Associates for more than a decade, beginning in the late 1990s. Marchese, who was the office manager, and Wright, a dental hygienist, said Monday in state Superior Court in Paterson that they diverted insurance payments to their employer for six years, from 2005 to 2011. In separate guilty pleas before Judge Greta Gooden Brown, the two women admitted that the payments were made by insurance companies in a series of checks for services rendered at the dental office. Marchese and Wright said they were authorized to receive those checks and deposit them in the business account of Belmont Dental Associates, but instead deposited the money in another account and used the money for their own purposes. The two women were charged in 2012 after Dr. Dominick Lembo, who owns the dental office, called an insurance company to inquire about payments that he should have received, and eventually discovered the thefts. As part of the plea deal, Marchese and Wright agreed to make restitution of $200,000 and will receive probation when they are sentenced May 2, said Jay McCann, an assistant Passaic County prosecutor. The agreement requires the two women to make a payment of $20,000 each on Monday and $5,000 each on their day of sentencing, McCann said. They will also pay $1,000 a month during their probation until the remaining balance is paid off, he said. Defense attorneys Robert Galluccio and Mark Musella told the judge that the $20,000 that each defendant is required to pay on Monday has already been placed in attorney trust accounts and that Lembo will receive the payment on the same day. Lembo, who attended the hearing on Monday, said later that he was pleased with the outcome of the plea agreement. “I am happy to see justice being served,” he said. Lembo said he was in “complete and total shock” when he found out that two longtime employees that he trusted were taking money from him. “They were paid well,” he said. “They were rewarded handsomely. And yet they stole.”
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Content retrieved from: http://www.northjersey.com/news/two-ex-employees-in-haledon-dental-office-plead-guilty-in-theft-of-200-000-from-office-1.744525

Manhattan Dentist Receptionist Stole Patient Info To Buy $700K In Apple Gift Cards; Sentenced To Two Years In Prison

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MANHATTAN, NY — A former receptionist at a Manhattan dental office was sentenced to at least two years in prison on Tuesday for stealing the personal data of hundreds of patients at the dental office where she worked and using it to buy Apple products, prosecutors said.

Annie Vuong, 31, was an integral part of an identity theft ring that began stealing information like names, birthdays, address and social security numbers from patients at Vuong’s Manhattan dental office, district attorney Cy Vance said. Vuong would send the stolen data to Devin Bazile, a former Apple store employee, who would use the information to purchase instant credit offered by Apple.

Between May and November 2012, Vuong copied the data of at least 653 patients and shared it with Bazile, prosecutors said.

In total, Vuong, Bazile and two other co-defendants purchased more than $700,000 in Apple products using the fraudulent credit, according to authorities.

“Annie Vuong exploited her access to confidential patient information to commit large-scale identity theft against hundreds of unsuspecting victims, as a jury found in this 189-count conviction,” Vance said in a statement. “Her role as the source of stolen information set this entire scheme into motion, enabling her co-defendants to rack up more than $700,000 in fraudulent purchases.”

The group was indicted in February 2015 after more than two years of investigation by Vance’s office.

In March, Vuong was found guilty of 189 charges, including grand larceny and identify theft. She was sentenced to serve between two and six years in state prison.

Vuong’s three co-defendants have already been sentenced. Baile, 33, was sentenced to serve between three and nine years in prison.

Content retrieved from https://patch.com/new-york/soho-little-italy/manhattan-receptionist-who-stole-patient-data-sentenced-prison

Original story:

A receptionist at a Manhattan dental office stole confidential information from hundreds of patients and teamed up with a former Apple employee to open fraudulent credit lines and buy hundreds of thousands in Apple gift cards, authorities said.

Annie Vuong, 27, allegedly copied the confidential records of over 250 patients, including their dates of birth, addresses and Social Security numbers and emailed the pilfered data to her cohort, former Apple salesman Devin Bazile, 30, court records show.

Bazile used the patients’ information to apply online for instant Apple credit lines ranging from $2,000 to $7,000 with an accomplice, Sharniqkwa Dukes, authorities alleged.

They received bar codes via email that could be used like a credit cards.

Bazile and another accomplice, Joshua Haughton, allegedly recruited crooked Apple employees in Manhattan, White Plains and New Jersey, authorities said.

They’d email the bar codes to Apple salesmen, including Ahmeen Evans, 26, to buy the gift cards so as not to arouse suspicion, court papers say.

The cybercrime ring allegedly bought $700,000 worth of Apple products with the fraudulent gift cards, according to the indictment.

The four were indicted on 394 counts of grand larceny, identity theft and other raps for the scam that ran from May to November 2012, court records show.

They pleaded not guilty at their arraignment Tuesday in Manhattan Supreme Court. Justice Melissa Jackson set bail at $750,000 for the ringleader, Bazile.

Vuong, her attorney said in court, is currently working for American Express.

“Using stolen information to purchase Apple products is one of the most common schemes employed by cybercrime and identity theft rings today,” said District Attorney Cy Vance. “We see in case after case how all it takes is single insider at a company – in this instance, allegedly, a receptionist in a dentists’ office – to set an identity theft ring in motion, which then tries to monetize the stolen information by purchasing Apple goods for resale or personal use.”

Content retrieved from Dentist receptionist stole patient info to buy $700K in Apple gift cards | New York Post