DEARBORN DOCTOR SENTENCED FOR ROLE IN DETROIT-AREA MEDICARE FRAUD

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Physician Sentenced to 72 Months in Prison for Role in Detroit-Area Medicare Fraud Scheme

A Detroit-area physician who led and directed a multimillion-dollar Medicare fraud scheme through his medical practice was sentenced today to 72 months in prison.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade of the Eastern District of Michigan, Special Agent in Charge David P. Gelios 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 (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

Dr. Hicham A. Elhorr, 48, of Dearborn, Michigan, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Nancy G. Edmunds of the Eastern District of Michigan.  In addition to imposing the prison term, Judge Edmunds ordered Elhorr to pay $2,073,108.16 in restitution.

According to admissions in his plea agreement, from approximately August 2008 through September 2012, Elhorr and his coconspirators fraudulently billed Medicare $4.2 million for purported in-home physician services.  Elhorr admitted that he employed unlicensed individuals through his visiting physician practice, House Calls Physicians PLLC, who held themselves out as licensed physicians and purported to provide physician home visits and other services to Medicare beneficiaries in Michigan.  The unlicensed individuals prepared medical documentation that Elhorr and other licensed physicians signed as if they had performed the visits when, in fact, no licensed physicians had treated the beneficiaries.

This case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Michigan.  The case was prosecuted by former Assistant Chief Catherine K. Dick and Trial Attorneys Matthew C. Thuesen and F. Turner Buford of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged approximately 2,300 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $7 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

DOCTOR PLEADS GUILTY TO HAVING ILLICIT SEXUAL CONDUCT WITH KENYAN MINORS

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Former Medical Doctor Pleads Guilty in Washington, D.C. to Engaging in Illicit Sexual Conduct with Minors in Kenya

A former medical doctor pleaded guilty today in Washington, D.C., to engaging in illicit sexual conduct in Kenya, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Assistant Director in Charge Valerie Parlave of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

John D. Ott, 67, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton in the District of Columbia to one count of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place. Ott was charged in an information filed on March 21, 2012.

According to filed court documents and proceedings, Ott was a former medical doctor who worked for non-governmental organizations and hospitals in Kenya. Court records show that Ott also started an orphanage in Kenya. Ott admitted that between approximately January 2004 and September 2012, he engaged in illicit sexual conduct in Muhuru Bay, Sori and Kendu Bay, Kenya, with at least 14 minors, who ranged in age from approximately nine to 17 years old when the illicit sexual conduct began. Ott admitted that he frequently paid for schooling and provided other financial support, including housing, for minors with whom he engaged in illicit conduct.

Ott has been in federal custody since he was arrested in December 2012, following his deportation from Tanzania. Engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Ott’s sentencing has been scheduled for July 26, 2013.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Keith A. Becker of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord of the District of Columbia. The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Significant assistance was provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.