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Alpharma to Pay $42.5 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations in Connection with Promotion of Drug Kadian

American pharmaceutical manufacturer Alpharma Inc. has agreed to pay $42.5 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations in connection with the marketing of the morphine-based drug, Kadian.



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Texas Pipeline Company Agrees to Pay Civil Penalty to Resolve Clean Water Act Violations

A Texas-based pipeline company has agreed to pay a $450,000 civil penalty to the United States to settle allegations that it failed to prepare and maintain proper facility response plans to deal with spills and environmental accidents at eight of its oil storage terminal facilities in Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska.



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Florida Health Care Provider & Individual Physician to Pay $12 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations

“The Justice Department is committed to vigorously pursuing those who defraud Medicare,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Division of the Department of Justice.



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Federal Court Orders Kansas Tax Preparer to Stop False Claims

A federal judge in Kansas City, Kan., has issued a preliminary injunction barring a Garden City, Kan., tax preparer, Jose Lares, from preparing returns with false dependent exemptions and false filing statuses.



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Detroit Woman Who Opened Clinics to Fraudulently Bill Medicare Sentenced to 96 Months in Prison

Miami resident Daisy Martinez was sentenced today to 96 months in prison for her role in a series of Detroit Medicare fraud schemes, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan; Special Agent in Charge Andrew G. Arena of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office



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Two Shell Chemical Companies Agree to Reduce Harmful Emissions Under Comprehensive Clean Air Act Settlements

Shell Chemical L.P. and Shell Chemical Yabucoa have agreed to install pollution reduction equipment on two petroleum refining facilities at an estimated cost of $6 million as part of two comprehensive Clean Air Act settlements.



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U.S. Sues Kellogg, Brown & Root for Alleged False Claims Act Violations Over Improper Costs for Private Security in Iraq

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, alleges that KBR knowingly included impermissible costs for private armed security in billings to the Army.



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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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Detroit Clinic Owner Sentenced to Prison for Role in $18 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

A Michigan man was sentenced today in Detroit to 81 months in prison for his role in a wide-ranging conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.



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Clinic Manager and Patient Recruiter Plead Guilty for Roles in $2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

Detroit-area residents Carlos Grana and Dwight Armstrong pleaded guilty today to engaging in a fraudulent medical testing scheme.



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Clinic Owners Who Moved Medicare Fraud Scheme from Miami to Detroit Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

Miami residents Jose and Denisse Martinez were each sentenced today to three years in prison for their role in running a Canton, Mich.,-based drug infusion clinic designed to defraud Medicare.



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UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Failing to Report Over $1 Million in Swiss Bank Accounts

Harry Abrahamsen, a resident of Oradell, N.J., pleaded guilty today to failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank or Financial Accounts.



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Los Angeles Business Owner Pleads Guilty to Submitting Nearly Half a Million Dollars in False and Fraudulent Claims to Medicare

The owner and operator of a Los Angeles durable medical equipment (DME) company pleaded guilty today to submitting nearly one half of a million dollars in false claims to Medicare.



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Former UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Hiding Assets in Secret Offshore Bank Accounts

Paul Zabczuk, a resident of The Woodlands, Texas, pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.



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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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Site Owner Agrees to Pay for Cleanup of New Jersey Superfund Site

Wall Herald Corporation has agreed to pay approximately $20 million for past and future cleanup costs incurred by the federal government at the Monitor Devices Superfund site in Wall Township, N.J., according to a settlement filed today in federal court in Trenton, N.J.



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Federal Officials Close the Investigation into the Death of Martin Lee Anderson

The Justice Department will not pursue federal criminal civil rights charges against the eight Bay County, Fla., Boot Camp staff members involved in the incident that resulted in the death of 14-year-old Martin Lee Anderson.



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Clinic Employee Pleads Guilty for Role in Fraudulent Testing Scheme

Lobato, 25, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Alan S. Gold in the Southern District of Florida to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.



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Two Houston-Area Residents Convicted in Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Fraudulent Claims of Hurricane Damage to Power Wheelchairs

A federal jury in Houston today convicted Helen Etinfoh, 50, and Paula Whitfield, 43, for their roles in a Medicare fraud conspiracy involving, among other things, fraudulent claims of hurricane damage to power wheelchairs.



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Residential Homebuilder Settles Clean Water Act Violations in 18 States and D.C.

Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., a national residential homebuilder, has agreed today to pay a $1 million civil penalty to resolve alleged Clean Water Act violations at 591 construction sites in 18 states and the District of Columbia.



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Miami Clinic Owner and Patient Recruiters Plead Guilty in $5.8 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

Maria Volero Marrero, 48, Lawrence Edward Humes, 57, and Keith Earnest Humes, 53, each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with a $5.8 million Medicare fraud scheme stemming from their involvement with a Miami-area HIV/AIDS infusion clinic.



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Former UBS Client Sentenced for Hiding $10 Million in Offshore Bank Accounts

Jack Barouh of Golden Beach, Fla., was sentenced today to 10 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan in Miami.



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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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Washington State Slaughterhouse Operator Agrees to Resolve Clean Water Act Permit Violations

Washington Beef LLC, the operator of a large slaughterhouse in Toppenish, Wash., has agreed to pay a $750,000 civil penalty and will install several pieces of new waste water treatment equipment that the Environmental Protection Agency estimates will cost approximately $3 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Clean Water Act.



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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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Miami Clinic Consultant Convicted in $5.8 Million Fraudulent HIV Infusion Scheme

David Marrero, 49, was convicted today of health care fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering in connection with a $5.8 million Medicare fraud scheme relating to his involvement with a Miami-area HIV/AIDS infusion clinic.



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Brooklyn Physical Therapy Clinic Executive and Three Employees Charged in Health Care Fraud Scheme

Solstice executive Dmitry Shteyman, 35, and Solstice employees Aleksey Shteyman, 41; Maxsim Shvedkin, 38; and Sara Kalantarov, 22, were each charged in an indictment unsealed today in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York, with conspiracy to defraud the United States, to submit and cause the submission of false claims and to pay health care kickbacks.



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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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Justice Department Settles Citizenship Status Discrimination and Intimidation Claims Against Argosy University in Nashville, Tennessee

The Department has reached an agreement with Argosy University in Nashville, Tenn., and its parent company, Education Management Corporation of Pittsburgh, to settle allegations that Argosy refused to hire a lawful permanent resident because he is a non-United States citizen and intimidated him for reporting the school’s refusal to hire.



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Pep Boys Agrees to Pay $5 Million to Resolve Clean Air Act Violations Claims

The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack - have agreed to pay $5 million in civil penalties and take corrective measures to settle claims that it violated the Clean Air Act by importing and selling motorcycles, recreational vehicles and generators manufactured in China that do not comply with environmental requirements.



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Justice Department Signs Agreement with St. Clair County, Illinois, to Ensure Civic Access for People with Disabilities

The Department announced an agreement with St. Clair County, Ill., to improve access to all aspects of civic life for persons with disabilities.



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City of Oswego, N.Y., Agrees to Invest $87 Million in Upgrades to Sewer System to Comply with Clean Water Act

To resolve long-standing problems with unpermitted sewer overflows, the city of Oswego, N.Y., will invest an estimated $87 million in improvements to its west side sewer system.



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Miami-area Clinic Owner Charged in $23 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme

An indictment unsealed today in U.S. District Court in Miami charges Flor Crisologo, 58, with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, to cause the submission of false claims to the Medicare program, and to pay health care kickbacks; one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud; and three counts of submitting false claims to the Medicare program.



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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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Ohio Utility to Settle Clean Air Act Violations

American Municipal Power (AMP), an Ohio non-profit utility, will permanently retire its Richard H. Gorsuch Station coal-fired power plant near Marietta under a settlement to resolve violations of the Clean Air Act.



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Former FBI Contract Linguist Sentenced for Leaking Classified Information to Blogger

U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams sentenced former FBI contract linguist, Shamai Kedem Leibowitz, aka Samuel Shamai Leibowitz, age 40, of Silver Spring, Md., today to 20 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for unlawfully providing classified documents to the host of an Internet blog who then published information from those documents on the blog.



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Massachusetts-Based EMC Corporation Pays U.S. $87.5 Million to Settle False Claims Act Case

EMC Corporation has paid the United States $87.5 million to settle a lawsuit alleging that the information technology company violated the False Claims Act and the federal Anti-kickback Act.



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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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Statement of Attorney General Holder on the U.S.- EU and EU Member States Declaration on Counterterrorism

“The Council’s adoption of this Declaration is a crucial step forward in our mutual fight against terrorism," said Attorney General Holder.



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New York City Ambulance Companies Pay U.S. $2.85 Million to Resolve Claims for Fraudulent Medicare Appeals

Metropolitan Ambulance & First Aid Corp. (now known as SEZ Metro Corp.), Metro North Ambulance Corp. (now known as SEZ North Corp.) and Big Apple Ambulance Service Inc. (formerly known as United Ambulance) have paid the United States $2.85 million to resolve false claims made to Medicare.



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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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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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United States Files Claims Against Feed Dealers in USDA Livestock Feed Assistance Initiative Fraud Case

The United States filed a False Claims Act suit against R&J Feed Co., Jerry Goodwin, Richard Carter and Carter Livestock Inc. in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo.



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Justice Department Settles Citizenship Status Discrimination Claims Against Morton’s Restaurant in Portland, Oregon

The Justice Department today announced that it has reached an agreement with Morton’s of Chicago/Portland Inc. to settle allegations that it required two non-citizens authorized to work in the United States to present more documents than legally required to establish their work eligibility.



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Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Sanitary Authority Agrees to Clean up Sewage Discharges to the Susquehanna River

The Williamsport, Pa., Sanitary Authority (WSA) has agreed to make significant improvements to its combined sewer system at an estimated cost of approximately $10 million, in order to resolve long-standing problems with combined sewer overflows to the Susquehanna River, which flows to the Chesapeake Bay.



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Detroit-Area Medical Clinic Owner and Vice President Convicted in $23 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

The owner and the vice president of a Detroit-area physical therapy clinic were convicted today by a federal jury for their roles in a $23 million Medicare fraud scheme, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services.



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Agreement Will Ensure the Start of Cleanup of Former Landfill Near South Lake Tahoe, California

A settlement with El Dorado County, Calif., will ensure the beginning of the cleanup, at an estimated cost of approximately $7 million, of the Meyers Landfill Site, located outside of the city of South Lake Tahoe, Calif.



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New Jersey UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Failing to Report More Than $2 Million in Swiss Bank Account

A Milltown, N.J., man pleaded guilty today to a federal charge of willfully subscribing to a false tax return, admitting he concealed over $2 million in a Swiss bank account.



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Justice Department Reaches Comprehensive Settlement with National Owner of Gas Stations Resolving ADA Claims

The Justice Department today announced a comprehensive settlement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with QuikTrip Corporation, a private company that owns and operates more than 550 gas stations, convenience stores, travel centers, and truck stops in the Midwest, South and Southwestern United States. 



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