New York Paralegal Blog

Imagine billions of dollars meant for hospitals, doctors, and patient care ending up in the pockets of criminals. It sounds like a movie plot, but it's a real-life crime that's happening every day. The good news? The U.S. government just announced the biggest crackdown on healthcare fraud in history! The Staggering Numbers The Department of Justice (DOJ) just brought charges against 324 people—including doctors, nurses, and pharmacists—for schemes that tried to steal over $14.6 billion from our healthcare system. But it’s not just about catching the bad guys; it's about getting our money back. Authorities seized over $245 million in cash, luxury cars, and even crypto. On top of that, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) stopped over $4 billion from being paid out on fake claims. Attorney General Pamela Bondi put it best: "This record-setting Health Care Fraud Takedown delivers justice to criminal actors who prey upon our most vulnerable citi...

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Thomas O’Donnell, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (“HHS-OIG”), announced today the arrest of JOHN R. REYNOLDS, the former Chief Executive Officer of the Hospital for Special Surgery (the “Hospital”), in connection with a decade-long kickback scheme involving $1.4 million in payments that he allegedly extorted or solicited from Hospital vendors, a Hospital employee, and a United Kingdom-based healthcare organization. REYNOLDS is also charged with making false statements to law enforcement. He was arrested this morning at his home in Massachusetts and is expected to appear later today in federal court in Boston.

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Janice K. Fedarcyk, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced that Raymond Bitar, the chief executive officer of Full Tilt Poker, was arrested this morning at John F. Kennedy International Airport. Bitar was charged last year with gambling, bank fraud, and money laundering offenses in connection with the operation of Full Tilt Poker. Upon Bitar’s return to the United States today, a superseding indictment was unsealed charging Bitar with defrauding poker customers by lying to them about the security of their funds.

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Janice K. Fedarcyk, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today the arrest of EVAN ZAUDER for possessing child pornography. ZAUDER, 26, a sixth-grade teacher at a private school in New Jersey, was arrested by FBI agents late in the evening on Monday, May 1, 2012, at his Manhattan residence. He was presented yesterday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein in Manhattan federal court.

Gary Foster, a former vice president in Citigroup, Inc.’s treasury finance department has been arrested on bank fraud charges arising from his embezzlement of more than $19 million. Foster was apprehended at John F. Kennedy International Airport Sunday morning when he arrived on a flight from Bangkok.1 The defendant’s initial appearance is scheduled this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Ramon E. Reyes, Jr. at the United States Courthouse, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, New York. The charges and arrest were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office. According to the complaint, Foster transferred money from various Citigroup accounts to Citigroup’s cash account and then to his personal account at a different bank. Between July 2010 and December 2010, he allegedly caused approximately $900,000 to be moved from...

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - A Westchester County, N.Y., man has been arrested on charges of possession, receipt and distribution of child pornography, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Ricky Valencia, 24, of Yonkers, N.Y., was taken into custody at his residence Tuesday by New York HSI agents. He was arraigned at the federal court in White Plains before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul E. Davison. According to court documents in the case, Valencia admitted he had taken pornographic pictures of a minor. He also had also used Gnutella, a peer-to-peer file sharing software, to download child pornography. During the course of the nine-month investigation, HSI agents seized Valencia's laptop computer. A forensic analysis of the laptop revealed Valencia had downloaded videos of children engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Further investigation revealed that numerous images of child pornography were found...

Daniel McMullen, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of the Jackson Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Scott Dennis, U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General - Southern Region (SBA-OIG), joined in announcing the following arrests: VICTOR PLANETTA, age 57, and EILEEN PLANETTA, age 53, residents of Slidell, Louisiana, were arrested by Special Agents of the FBI, with assistance from officers of the Slidell, LA Police Department, at approximately 6:00 p.m., on April 26, 2011, pursuant to arrest warrants issued by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi. Following their arrests, the PLANETTAs were transported to Mississippi and held in the Stone County, MS Jail, pending their initial court appearance. The PLANETTAs were indicted by a grand jury in the Southern District of Mississippi on charges that they conspired to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) by making ...

WASHINGTON—The Departments of Justice, State, and Homeland Security today jointly announced a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of individuals allegedly responsible for the murder of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent Jaime Zapata and the attempted murder of ICE HSI Special Agent Victor Avila. The FBI, in conjunction with ICE, has established a 24-hour tip line based in the United States to process the information. Individuals in the United States with information are encouraged to call 1-866-859-9778. Individuals in Mexico can provide information by calling +001 800-225-5324. Spanish language speakers will be available using either number. Anyone wishing to e-mail information can do so by visiting: https://tips.fbi.gov. All information is considered confidential.

Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau announced today the indictment and arrest of a senior executive director for facilities management at Bellevue Hospital for official misconduct after she pressured vendors and employees to provide goods and services for her home. The defendant, FARIDEH TABAEI, 55, of Long Island, was indicted on charges of official misconduct. The crimes charged in the indictment occurred between July 2004 and April 2005.