Detroit-area residents Faisal Chaudry and Guy Ross pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Detroit for their participation in a fraudulent Medicare home health scheme

Ninety-four people have been charged for their alleged participation in schemes to collectively submit more than $251 million in false claims to the Medicare program in the continuing operation of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in Miami; Baton Rouge, La.; Brooklyn, N.Y.; Detroit and Houston.

Attorney General Eric Holder and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today kicked-off the first in a series of regional health care fraud prevention summits in Miami.

"We are here to announce the results of the largest federal health care fraud takedown in our nation’s history: 94 people in four cities have been charged for their alleged participation in schemes to submit more than $251 million in false Medicare claims," said Attorney General Holder.

"This summit is an important opportunity – the chance to build on what was discussed, and achieved, during the first “National Summit on Health Care Fraud” that Secretary Sebelius and I convened in Washington in January," said Attorney General Holder.

The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights today issued new technical assistance guidance for medical providers which will help people with mobility disabilities obtain accessible medical care.

The Justice Department publishes four new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) proposals addressing the accessibility of websites, the provision of captioning and video description in movies shown in theaters, accessible equipment and furniture, and the ability of 9-1-1 centers to take text and video calls from individuals with disabilities.

Paula Whitfield, a patient recruiter for a Houston durable medical equipment company, was sentenced today to 21 months in prison in connection with a $3 million power wheelchair fraud scheme.

Modesto and Victoria de la Vega pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for their participation in a $13.7 million HIV infusion Medicare fraud scheme.

The United States has filed a complaint under the False Claims Act against Dr. Najam Azmat and the Satilla Regional Medical Center in Waycross, Ga.

Leon Pullen pleaded guilty to civil rights violations stemming from several incidents where he sexually assaulted and stole money from women.

Responding to the President’s and Attorney General’s call for increased transparency, federal agencies across the government have released more documents, made more information available on websites and decreased backlogs in the past year.

Arturo Fonseca, Isis Torres, Francisco Portillo, Eduardo Romero and William Madrigal pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Adalberto Jordan to various health care fraud charges.

Two brothers pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for participating in a $13.7 million HIV infusion Medicare fraud scheme.

The United States has settled alleged violations of federal and state underground storage tank (UST) regulations at 17 gas stations in Delaware and Maryland formerly owned by Duncan Petroleum Corp.

The Department of Justice and the Rainbow River Child Development Center of Hawthorne, Calif., have joined in a settlement agreement to assure that children with diabetes will receive appropriate care so that they may participate fully in the programs and activities at the center.

Two South Florida residents pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for their participation in separate Medicare fraud schemes.

A federal judge in Santa Ana, Calif., has permanently barred Thanh Viet Jeremy Cao and his business, Phoenix Financial Management Group, from preparing federal tax returns.

Jose Garcia, 55, who was a fugitive for nearly two years, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme involving a Miami-area HIV clinic.

Carlos Grana, a Miami resident, was also sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lawrence P. Zatkoff in the Eastern District of Michigan to three years of supervised release following his prison term and was ordered to pay $2 million in restitution.

The civil injunction suit alleges that Charlie Wilson and his Chicago business, CBD Tax Service, claim bogus deductions and credits on customers’ federal tax returns.

A New York corporation, whose principal place of business is Newnan, Ga., was sentenced to pay a $3.3 million criminal fine for conspiring to allocate customers in the food service equipment hardware market, including walk-in refrigeration equipment.

Farmington Hills, Mich., physician Jose Castro-Ramirez was sentenced today to 14 years in prison for his role in a wide-ranging conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program. Castro-Ramirez was also ordered to pay $9.4 million in restitution and sentenced to a three-year term of supervised release following his prison term.

As the Deepwater Horizon oil spill clean-up efforts continue and the Gulf Coast Claims Facility opens its doors, the Department of Justice is reminding members of the public to be aware of and report any instances of suspected fraudulent activity related to relief operations and funding for victims.

A federal district judge in Atlanta has permanently barred Saloum A. Njie and his company, MIAAS Associates LLC, from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Today Attorney General Eric Holder and U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius kicked off the second in a series of daylong summits bringing together a wide array of federal, state and local partners, beneficiaries, providers and other interested parties to discuss innovative ways to eliminate fraud within the U.S. health care system.

The civil injunction suit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, seeks to permanently bar Christopher Musyoki and Samuel Nganga from preparing federal returns for others.

A Brooklyn, N.Y., grand jury returned an indictment today against two former executives of Asiana Airlines, Inc. for participating in a conspiracy to fix economy class airfares paid by passengers for travel from the United States to the Republic of Korea.

"This summit is an important step forward – an opportunity to build on what has been discussed, and achieved, since Secretary Sebelius and I convened the first “National Summit on Health Care Fraud” in Washington in January," said Attorney General Holder.

"These summits offer our agencies the opportunity to share our success stories, explain our innovative investigative approaches, and listen to and learn from your ideas and concerns," said Assistant Attorney General Breuer

The United States has asked a federal court to permanently bar a Birmingham, Ala., man from preparing federal tax returns for customers, the Justice Department announced today. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Birmingham, alleges that Douglas E. Dent fabricates large tax withholdings that result in large bogus refund claims on customers’ tax returns.

A medical doctor, a clinic owner and four nurses, all South Florida residents, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Adalberto Jordan in U.S. District Court in Miami for their participation in a fraudulent Medicare home health care scheme, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

Flor Crisologo, 58, pleaded guilty before Magistrate Judge Barry L. Garber in U.S. District Court in Miami to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

A federal district judge in Orlando, Fla., has permanently barred Elisa Veronica Barron of Orlando from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

Roy W. Bradford pleaded guilty in federal district court in Dayton, Ohio, to willfully filing a false tax return for 2004.

Boris Sachakov, M.D., was arrested today in Brooklyn, N.Y., and charged in connection with a scheme to defraud Medicare and numerous other health care benefit programs of at least $3.5 million.

Three individuals pleaded guilty today in connection with a Medicare fraud scheme operated out of a Houston-area durable medical equipment (DME) company.

Three Miami-area residents were sentenced to prison today for their participation in a $22 million Medicare fraud scheme operated through two Miami home health agencies, ABC Home Health Care Inc. and Florida Home Health Care Providers Inc.

Paul Edward Pavulak, 66, of New Castle, Del., was convicted today by a federal jury in Wilmington of child exploitation offenses.

The United States has filed suit seeking to permanently enjoin Endia Delores Nipper and her company, TDNS Tax Services, from preparing federal tax returns.

A federal court in Miami has permanently barred Alberto Camejo and his business, ABCY Star Service LLC, from claiming the First-Time Homebuyer Credit on returns they prepare unless ensuring that the taxpayer is entitled to claim the credit.

An owner of two Houston health care companies pleaded guilty today in connection with a $6.3 million Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).

Cynthia Peters and Melissa Edwards pleaded guilty to one count each of aiding and assisting in the filing of a false tax return in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, La.

It is a privilege to be part of this year’s conference and to join you all in discussing the responsibilities that we share – responsibilities to ourselves and our society; to our profession and our predecessors; to America’s next generation of law students, attorneys, and jurists.

A New Orleans-area medical doctor and the owner and operator of a medical equipment company each pleaded guilty today for their roles in a Baton Rouge-area durable medical equipment (DME) health care fraud scheme.

The owner and operator of a Los Angeles durable medical equipment company was sentenced to 46 months in prison in connection with a power wheelchair scheme to defraud Medicare.

Princewill Njoku, 51, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Gray Miller in Houston to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

Seventy-three defendants, including a number of alleged members and associates of an Armenian-American organized crime enterprise, were charged in indictments unsealed today in five judicial districts with various health care fraud-related crimes involving more than $163 million in fraudulent billing.

The United States has sued a Bryson City, N.C., tax return preparer seeking to bar her and her company from preparing federal tax returns for others.

Seven additional Houston-area residents who allegedly served as patient recruiters and a nurse have been charged for their alleged participation in a $5 million Medicare home healthcare fraud scheme.