"Today’s charges mark the first time that HEAT’s Medicare Fraud Strike Force has indicted a corporate entity for Medicare fraud," said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.

"In addition to the arrests and criminal charges that Assistant Attorney General Breuer announced, we are also announcing that we have obtained a Temporary Restraining Order freezing the assets of four corporate entities," said Assistant Attorney General West.

A Virginia man was sentenced today to 18 months in prison in connection with a scheme to defraud the U.S. Department of Defense of more than $450,000.

Brooklyn-area resident Yefim Drakhler pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme operated out of the Solstice Wellness Center, a Brooklyn-area clinic purportedly providing physical therapy and various diagnostic services.

The United States has sued Iliana Sorensen of Hialeah, Fla., and Gerald A. Poynter II of Kansas City, Mo., seeking to bar them from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Sharon D. Thurman, who owned and operated “Sharon’s Tax Services,” was charged with 14 counts of making false claims for tax refunds, two counts of aggravated identity theft and two counts of theft of government money.

Miami-area residents Emilio and Maria Haber and Detroit-area residents Genna Yates and Darryl Nichols pleaded guilty yesterday for their roles in a Detroit-area diagnostic testing fraud scheme.

In anticipation of the upcoming election, the department today provided information about its efforts, through the Civil Rights and Criminal Divisions, to ensure that all qualified voters have the opportunity to cast their ballots and have their votes counted, without incidence of discrimination, intimidation or fraud.

Former National Century Financial Enterprises (NCFE) executive Rebecca S. Parrett, 62, has been arrested in Mexico.

A patient recruiter who sold the personal information of Medicare beneficiaries from San Diego and Los Angeles to fraudulent Los Angeles medical clinics and durable medical equipment (DME) companies was sentenced late yesterday to 21 months in prison in connection with a scheme to defraud Medicare.

A federal court in Pensacola, Fla., sentenced the last two promoters of a fraudulent tax- and debt-elimination scheme to prison terms for their roles in tax fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.

Donald Williams was sentenced today in connection with a series of Costa Rica-based business opportunity fraud ventures.

A patient recruiter for a Houston-based home health care company pleaded guilty today in connection with a $5.2 million Medicare fraud scheme.

John T.C. Yeh, the owner of Viable Communications Inc., and his brother, Joseph Yeh, the former vice president for corporate strategy and second in charge for Viable, pleaded guilty today to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission’s Video Relay Service program.

Axel Rafael Mercado pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion before U.S. District Court Judge Patricia A. Seitz in the Southern District of Florida.

Victor Manuel Amaya was sentenced to two years in prison for employment tax fraud.

Today, Department of Justice Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius visited Brooklyn, N.Y., where they participated in the third Regional Health Care Fraud Prevention Summit.

Kevin Shaffer of Sarasota, Fla., and Washington D.C., pleaded guilty to bank fraud and tax evasion before Alexandria, Va., federal district court Judge Gerald Bruce Lee.

Todd M. Gongwer, of Columbus, Ohio, was sentenced today to two years in prison for conspiring with convicted Columbus area home builder Thomas Parenteau to commit a mortgage fraud scheme in which the pair defrauded banks into lending more than $10 million to Gongwer, his nominees and unqualified borrowers.

Brent Oncale, 36, of Houston, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va., to conspiracy charges in connection with his role as a principal of the A&O entities, a group of businesses that acquired and marketed over $100 million of investments in life settlements to more than 800 victims across the United States and Canada.

According to court testimony and documents, Dennis G. Sartain of Hilliard, Ohio, was the accountant for convicted Columbus-area home builder, Thomas Parenteau.

Today a federal jury in Washington convicted Kevin A. Ring, a former lobbyist who worked with Jack A. Abramoff, on five counts related to a scheme to corrupt public officials by providing a stream of things of value.

Jeffery Leon Ceaser, a resident of Montgomery, Ala., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and one count of identity theft.

Morris B. Fahnbulleh, 40, and Joe O. Bondo, 39, both of Monrovia, Liberia, were each convicted on one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, four counts of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud and four false claims counts. Fahnbulleh was also convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud.

The owner of a Langhorne, Penn., asbestos abatement company pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Mohammed El-Fallal was also sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood in the Eastern District of Michigan to two years of supervised release following his prison term and was ordered to pay $2.8 million in restitution.

"The Criminal Division, along with our partners in the U.S. Attorneys Offices, is firmly committed to supporting you in our collective mission to prevent and deter any attempts to defraud the American people of the money invested in our future through the Recovery Act," said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.

Jose Garcia, 55, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Miami to 57 months in prison for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme involving a Miami-area HIV clinic.

A former Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) manager pleaded guilty today to charges that he accepted and agreed to accept approximately $807,000 in bribes from two Con Edison industrial pipe supply vendors.

On Monday, after a one-week trial in federal court in Los Angeles, a jury found Donna K. Wells, 52, guilty of one count of health care fraud.

A former employee of two Massachusetts-based customer relationship management agencies that purchase direct mail advertising has agreed to plead guilty to charges relating to his receipt of more than $1.8 million in kickbacks.

Russell Mackert, 51, of Spring, Texas, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va., to conspiracy charges in connection with his role as a lawyer for the A&O entities, a group of businesses that acquired and marketed more than $100 million of fraudulent investments in life settlements to more than 800 victims across the United States and Canada.

On March 1, 2010, Linda Eteimo Ere Kendabie, 29, of Nigeria, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit health care fraud.

Houston-area residents Oliver Nkuku and Callistus Edozie were sentenced to 120 months in prison and 41 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in a durable medical equipment (DME) Medicare fraud scheme.

A former employee of a subsidiary of a financial institution pleaded guilty today for his participation in bid-rigging and fraud conspiracies related to contracts for the investment of municipal bond proceeds and other municipal finance contracts.

A former purchasing official at Mount Sinai Medical Center and School of Medicine in New York pleaded guilty to participating in bid rigging and fraud conspiracies related to contracts for maintenance and insulation work performed at Mount Sinai.

A former sales representative of a Lyndhurst, N.J.-based industrial pipe supply company pleaded guilty today to participating in a conspiracy to commit fraud and pay bribes to a Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) purchasing manager in return for the manager’s efforts to steer contracts to the sales representative’s company.

A former employee of a subsidiary of a financial institution was arrested on a criminal complaint at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York yesterday after entering the United States.

A former residential sales manager at a Florida property management company pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with housing repair contracts for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Attorney General Holder announced today the results of Operation Broken Trust, a nationwide operation organized by the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to target investment fraud.

U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle also ordered Heliber Toro Mejia, 52; Humberto Toro Mejia, 60; and Luz Elena Acuna Rios, 53; all of Bogotá, to serve three years of supervised release following their prison terms.

Four Detroit-area residents were arrested today by federal agents from the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and FBI as part of an ongoing investigation into a $14.5 million home health care fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and HHS.

Three former executives of a financial services company were indicted today for their participation in fraud schemes and conspiracies related to bidding for contracts for the investment of municipal bond proceeds and other municipal finance contracts.

Alan D. Mendelsohn, 52, of Broward County, Fla., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge William J. Zloch, to a one-count criminal information, charging him with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, to make false statements and to file false tax returns.

“The charges announced today send a strong message that we will not tolerate any fraudulent activity designed to profit from this tragic oil spill,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.

"It is clear – from the record of achievement that you just shared – that great progress is being made here in Northern California. And I believe that the discussions we're beginning today provide a unique and important opportunity to build on all that is being achieved."

A Florida man and two U.K. nationals pleaded guilty Dec.10, 2010, to immigration fraud charges for their roles in a scheme to fraudulently procure visas from the U.S. Embassy in London through a Florida property development company called Royal Development.

The owner and the vice president of a Detroit-area physical therapy clinic were sentenced to 151 months and 108 months in prison, respectively, for their leading roles in a $23 million Medicare fraud scheme.

According to the government complaint in the civil injunction case in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, David Miner promotes a “decoder” scheme through a website.

Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius visited Boston today, where they participated in the fourth Regional Health Care Fraud Prevention Summit.