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U.S. Joins Lawsuit Against Waycross, Georgia, Medical Center & Physician for Alleged False Claims Billings to Medicare and Medicaid

The United States has intervened in a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging that Satilla Health Services Inc., dba Satilla Regional Medical Center, and Dr. Najam Azmat submitted claims for medically substandard and unnecessary services to Medicare and Medicaid.



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Mobil Oil Companies to Pay U.S. $32.2 Million to Resolve Allegations of Underpayment of Royalties from American Indian and Federal Lands

Mobil Natural Gas Inc., Mobil Exploration & Producing U.S. Inc. and their affiliates have agreed to pay the United States $32.2 million to resolve claims that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly underpaying royalties owed on natural gas produced from federal and American Indian leases.



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Learning Tree International Inc. Agrees to Pay $4.5 Million to Settle Allegations of Improper Billing Practices and Retention of Federal Funds

Learning Tree International Inc. has agreed to pay the United States $4.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act when it improperly invoiced federal agencies in advance for information technology training courses and kept federal funds for training courses that were never actually provided.



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U.S. Sues Missouri Lawyer to Halt Alleged Tax-Fraud Schemes

The United States has asked a federal court to permanently bar Philip A. Kaiser, a St. Louis tax lawyer, from promoting several allegedly fraudulent tax schemes.



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Justice Department Granted Order to Ensure Students in Walthall County, Mississippi, Have Equal Opportunities

A federal court has ordered the Walthall County, Miss., School District to eliminate policies that have resulted in significant racial segregation among students in the school district.



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Former NSA Senior Executive Charged with Illegally Retaining Classified Information, Obstructing Justice and Making False Statements

A federal grand jury in the District of Maryland has returned a 10-count indictment charging former National Security Agency (NSA) senior executive Thomas A. Drake with the willful retention of classified information, obstruction of justice and making false statements.



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Justice Department Asks Federal Court to Shut Down Ohio Firm That Allegedly Promotes Improper Theft Loss Deductions

The United States has sued an Ohio man and his company, seeking to bar them from promoting a scheme that allegedly helps customers claim improper theft loss tax deductions.



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Alaska Seafood Company Agrees to Pay More Than $500,000 to Resolve Alleged Environmental Violations

Westward Seafoods Inc., the operator of a seafood processing plant in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, will pay a $570,000 civil penalty as part of a settlement agreement to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act and the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act.



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Department of Justice Will Not Challenge Hospital Cost Information Exchange Program in California

The department said the proposed information exchange may reduce health care costs by improving competition among hundreds of hospitals in California and facilitating more informed purchasing decisions by group purchasers of health care services.



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Schwarz Pharma Pays $22 Million to Settle False Claims Allegations Concerning Reimbursement for Unapproved Drugs

Schwarz Pharma Inc. will pay $22 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations that the company failed to advise the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that two unapproved products did not qualify for coverage under federal health care programs.



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Two Johnson & Johnson Subsidiaries to Pay Over $81 Million to Resolve Allegations of Off-Label Promotion of Topamax

American pharmaceutical manufacturers Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical LLC and Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., both subsidiaries of Johnson & Johnson, have agreed to pay more than $81 million to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from the illegal promotion of the epilepsy drug Topamax.



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Tennessee Man Convicted of Illegally Accessing Sarah Palin’s E-mail Account and Obstruction of Justice

David C. Kernell, 22, was convicted by a federal jury in Knoxville, Tenn., today for intentionally accessing without authorization the e-mail account of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin and obstruction of justice.



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Department of Justice Announces Allocation of 33 New Prosecutors, Launches 3 Community Prosecution Pilot Teams in Indian Country

“Violent crimes, and particularly crimes against women and girls, continue to devastate tribal communities across the country, and the U.S. Attorney community is crucial to the Department of Justice’s response,” Attorney General Holder said. 



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Novartis Vaccines & Diagnostics to Pay More Than $72 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Concerning TOBI

Novartis Vaccines & Diagnostics Inc. and Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation have agreed to pay $72.5 million to resolve civil False Claims Act allegations arising from the marketing of the cystic fibrosis drug TOBI.



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U.S. Intervenes in Suit Against KBR and Panalpina Alleging Kickbacks Under the False Claims Act

The Department has intervened in a whistleblower lawsuit against Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR), Panalpina Inc. and others that alleges that employees of two freight forwarders doing business with the companies provided unlawful kickbacks to KBR transportation department employees.



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New York Small Business Lender to Pay U.S. $26.3 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations

Ciena Capital LLC, a private, non-depository lender located in New York City, has reached an agreement with the United States to settle fraud claims related to its small business lending for $26.3 million.



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Georgia Food Equipment Hardware Manufacturer and Its Former President Agree to Plead Guilty to Customer Allocation Conspiracy

A New York corporation, whose principal place of business is Newnan, Ga., and its former president have agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to allocate customers for the sale of food service equipment hardware, including walk-in refrigeration equipment.



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Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Arkansas Alleging Statewide Violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act

The Department has filed a lawsuit alleging that the state of Arkansas is systemically violating the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.



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U.K. Firm Fined $2 Million After Pleading Guilty to Illegally Exporting Boeing 747 Aircraft to Iran

Balli Aviation Ltd., a subsidiary of the United Kingdom-based Balli Group PLC, was sentenced today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to pay a $2 million fine and to serve a five-year corporate period of probation after pleading guilty on Feb. 5, 2010, to a two-count criminal information in connection with its illegal export of commercial Boeing 747 aircraft from the United States to Iran.



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Two Men Charged with Additional Counts for the Racially-Motivated Arson of a Massachusetts Church

A federal grand jury in the District of Massachusetts has charged Michael Jacques and Thomas Gleason of Springfield, Mass., in a three-count superseding indictment in relation to the arson of a church.



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Justice Department Settles Citizenship Status Discrimination Matter Against ValleyCrest Landscape Companies

The Department announced a settlement agreement with ValleyCrest Landscape Companies to resolve charges of hiring discrimination against U.S. citizens and other work-authorized domestic workers at its Virginia locations.



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Nine Hospitals in Seven States to Pay U.S. More Than $9.4 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Related to Kyphoplasty

Nine hospitals located in Alabama, Indiana, Florida, Michigan, South Carolina, New York and Minnesota have agreed to pay the United States more than $9.4 million to settle allegations that the health care facilities submitted false claims to Medicare.



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Two Chinese Nationals Convicted of Illegally Exporting Electronics Components Used in Military Radar & Electronic Warfare

Zhen Zhou Wu aka Alex Wu, Yufeng Wei aka Annie Wei and Chitron Electronics Inc. (Chitron-US), were convicted of unlawfully exporting defense articles and Commerce controlled goods to China on numerous occasions between 2004 and 2007 and conspiring to violate U.S. export laws over a period of ten years.



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The Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati and the Christ Hospital to Pay $108 Million for Violating Anti-Kickback Statute and Defrauding Medicare and Medicaid

The Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati and one of its former member hospitals, The Christ Hospital, have agreed to pay the United States $108 million to settle claims that they violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act by paying unlawful remuneration to doctors in exchange for referring cardiac patients to The Christ Hospital in a pay-to-play scheme.



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Bulgarian National Extradited from Poland to the United States to Face Charges Related to Alleged Role in International Money Laundering Scheme

Georgi Vasilev Pletnyov, 49, of Svishtov, Bulgaria, was extradited from Poland to the United States on Friday, May 21, 2010. 



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Man Admits Attempting to Use a Weapon of Mass Destruction to Bomb Skyscraper in Downtown Dallas

Hosam Maher Husein Smadi pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to a felony offense related to his attempted bombing of a downtown Dallas skyscraper in September 2009.



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Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities to Pay Nearly $1 Million for Alleged Clean Water Act Violations

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities has agreed to pay nearly $1 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Water Act at numerous sites in Alaska



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Heart Device Manufacturer in Minnesota and Hospitals in Ohio & Kentucky to Pay Nearly $4 Million to Resolve Fraud Allegations

St. Jude Medical Inc., a heart device manufacturer; Parma Community General Hospital; and Norton Healthcare have paid the United States $3,898,300 to resolve false claim allegations that St. Jude paid illegal kickbacks to two hospitals to secure heart-device business.



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United States Settles False Claims Act Allegations with Cochlear Americas for $880,000

Cochlear Americas, a Colorado-based cochlear implant manufacturer, has agreed to pay $880,000 to resolve allegations that it paid illegal remuneration to health care providers to induce purchases of cochlear implant systems.



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Two Military Officials, Two Contractors and Contracting Company Indicted for Alleged Roles in Bribery and Money Laundering Scheme Related to DOD Contract in Afghanistan

Two U.S. military officials deployed to Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, two Department of Defense (DOD) contractors and a contracting company were charged late yesterday for their roles in an alleged bribery and money laundering scheme related to the award of a DOD trucking services contract in Afghanistan.



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Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Racial Discrimination by the Township of Green Brook, New Jersey

The Department has reached a consent decree with the township of Green Brook, N.J., that, if approved by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, will resolve the department’s lawsuit against Green Brook alleging racial discrimination in employment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.



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United States Files Counterclaims and Crossclaims in Small Business Administration Loan Fraud Case

The United States filed False Claims Act counterclaims against Saehan Bank and crossclaims against Steve Yong Kim and Young Soon Kim in the Northern District of Oklahoma.



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Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, Two Ohio Hospitals, and Physician Group to Pay $2.6 Million to Resolve Fraud Allegations

The Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, two of its member hospitals (The Fort Hamilton Hospital and The University Hospital), and University Internal Medicine Associates Inc. have agreed to pay the United States $2.6 million to settle claims that they violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act by engaging in a kickback-for-referral scheme.



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Taiwanese Couple Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Trading Protected Black Coral

Two Taiwanese nationals were sentenced to prison today in federal court in the U.S. Virgin Islands for conspiracy to ship internationally protected black coral into the United States in violation of federal wildlife statutes.



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Twenty-six Alleged Bloods Gang Members and Associates Indicted on Federal Racketeering, Firearms and Narcotics Charges

“The Department of Justice is committed to protecting our nation’s communities from the violent and dangerous crimes alleged in this indictment,” said Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer.



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Three Individuals with Alleged Ties to Aryan Brotherhood Charged with a 2008 Murder That Occurred in Atascosa County, Texas

Three alleged members or associates of the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas (ABT) have been indicted for their alleged roles in a 2008 murder in Atascosa County, Texas.



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Ten Alleged Secret Agents Arrested in the United States

Eight individuals were arrested Sunday for allegedly carrying out long-term, “deep-cover” assignments in the United States on behalf of the Russian Federation.



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Six Alleged Members of the Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation Indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy

The indictment, unsealed today in Hammond, Ind., charges six alleged members of the gang known as Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation for their alleged roles in a racketeering conspiracy in Hammond, Ind., and elsewhere.



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Jury Convicts District of Columbia Fish Wholesaler & Two Employees for Purchasing Illegally Harvested Striped Bass

Following a five-week trial, a fish wholesaler and two of its employees were found guilty with purchasing illegally harvested striped bass, known locally as rockfish, from the Potomac River in Virginia and Maryland from 1995 through 2007.



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Three Arizona Men Sentenced for Illegally Possessing a Golden Eagle

Arthur Batala, Darrell Batala and Steven Silas, all members of the Hopi Indian Tribe of Arizona, were sentenced for taking and possessing a golden eagle in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, a federal law that protects most species of birds in the United States.



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Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Racial Discrimination at Ann Arbor, Michigan, Michigan Apartment Complex

The owners and operators of Ivanhoe House Apartments, an apartment complex in Ann Arbor, Mich., have agreed to pay $82,500 to settle a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department alleging that they had discriminated against African-American home-seekers, in violation of the Fair Housing Act.



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Citing Conflict with Federal Law, Department of Justice Challenges Arizona Immigration Law

The Department of Justice challenged the state of Arizona’s recently passed immigration law, S.B. 1070, in federal court today. The Department said the Arizona law unconstitutionally interferes with the federal government’s authority to set and enforce immigration policy.



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Three Indicted in Alleged Conspiracy Involving the Trafficking of Haitian Nationals

Carline Ceneus, Cabioch Bontemps and Willy Edouard have been indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in the Northern District of Florida for engaging in a conspiracy to commit forced labor and visa fraud involving Haitian nationals.



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Charges Unsealed Against Five Alleged Members of Al-Qaeda Plot to Attack the United States and United Kingdom

The Justice Department today announced charges against five members of an al-Qaeda plot to attack targets in the United States and United Kingdom.



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Justice Department Files a Lawsuit Alleging Employment Discrimination by Georgia Rug Manufacturer and Seller

The Department filed a lawsuit against Garland Sales Inc., a rug manufacturer and seller located in Dalton, Ga., alleging it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination by imposing unnecessary and discriminatory hurdles to employment for work authorized individuals.



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Justice Department Sues to Bar Utah Man from Promoting Alleged False Church-based Tax Fraud Scheme

The United States has asked a federal court to permanently bar a Utah man from promoting an alleged false church-based tax fraud scheme.



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Medicare Fraud Strike Force Charges 94 Doctors, Health Care Company Owners, Executives and Others for More Than $251 Million in Alleged False Billing

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.



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Justice Department Files Fair Housing Lawsuit Alleging Discrimination at Apartment Complex in Renton, Washington

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the owner, management company and former manager of Summerhill Place Apartments, a 268-unit apartment complex in Renton, Wash., for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin and familial status in the rental of apartments.



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Justice Department Resolves Lawsuit Alleging Disability Discrimination by Ventura County, California

The Justice Department today announced a consent decree resolving a lawsuit filed against Ventura County, Calif., alleging that the county violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it refused to hire a qualified applicant for a children’s social services position because she is deaf and required reasonable accommodations.



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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the American Association of People with Disabilities “Justice for All” Event

"It’s an honor to salute your contributions and to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the ADA – and the 15th Anniversary of the AAPD – with so many friends, colleagues and partners," said Attorney General Holder.