Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Blog

Published on: October 18, 2012

Medicare Fraud Strike Force Scores Victory: Ambulance Admin Submitted Over $1.7 Million in False Claims

On October 16th, 31-year-old Okechukwu Ofoegbu pled guilty to charges that he had tried to bilk Medicare out of over $1.7 million. His arrest, prosecution, and guilty charge showcase the seriousness with which the Medicare Fraud Strike Force has been cracking down on crimes like Los Angeles healthcare fraud.

Back in May, Ofoegbu was indicted along with 106 other people, including nurses, doctors, and medical specialists of all types, for allegedly trying to falsely bill Medicare for over $452 million. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force – the group that organized the investigation and indictments – has charged nearly 1,500 defendants since the spring of 2007. Collectively, these people have been accused of trying to steal ~$5 billion from Medicare’s coffers.

Ofoegbu’s plea arrangement will net him a restitution fine of over $550,000, and he could face up to a decade behind bars. He will be sentenced in January 2013.

Published on: October 12, 2012

4 Weird Examples of Los Angeles Petty Theft

by Michael Kraut

Whether you’ve been arrested for Los Angeles petty theft for stealing Tide detergent from a local grocery store or for swiping human hair from the garbage bins of a salon, you might be shocked to know that you are not alone – not by a long shot.

Indeed, bizarre theft crimes in Southern California are actually surprisingly common. Here are 3 weird items that are regularly pilfered.

1. Tide Detergent

Published on: October 5, 2012

Wracked with Despair After Getting Hit with a Los Angeles Lewd Conduct Charge?

by Michael Kraut

If you’ve been recently arrested for a sex crime or for lewd conduct in Los Angeles charges; odds are, you’re feeling pretty low.

Whether you “did it” or not — or you’re possibly guilty of certain aspects of the charges –- you may experience tremendous isolation, overwhelm, and even guilt as the severity of your situation becomes more clear. Unfortunately, the stresses of being charged with lewd conduct can take their toll.

Consider a recent tragedy out of Northern California, where a 28-year-old 6th grade teacher, James Izumizaki, killed himself shortly after being charged with having a relationship with a 14-year-old student. The Albany Middle School teacher was arrested on September 27th at his house and released after he made $100,000 bail. Izumizaki coached basketball, volleyball, and student government programs; he apparently was well liked by many students. Officers with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department said that his body was found in his car on Via Alamitos in San Lorenzo. He left a note which indicated that he had committed suicide.

Published on: September 27, 2012

No More Los Angeles Petty Theft Charges for Lindsay Lohan: Prosecutors Drop Case against Actress

by Michael Kraut

Did Lindsay Lohan perpetrate theft in Los Angeles and add yet again to her litany of brushes with the law?

We’ll never know, since the Los Angeles Police Department has now closed a case against her, after prosecutors abandoned the idea of filing charges. News reports noted that detectives at the LAPD wanted to chat with Lohan about an event that occurred on August 18th, in which a credit card, cash, and some sunglasses were swiped from a home in the Hollywood Hills.

One of the victims, millionaire Sam Magid, apparently had a long-term relationship with Lohan. Prosecutors encountered trouble because eyewitnesses refused to cooperate, and the victims also did not want to go through the hassle of prosecuting, for whatever reason. Out of possibilities, the LAPD basically gave up: good news for Lohan, whose acting career has taken a backseat to her tabloid exploits – most famously her 2007 Los Angeles DUI and probation violations, which this blog and other media sources covered at length.

Published on: September 25, 2012

Los Angeles Lewd Conduct News: ICE Chief of Staff Resigns: Allegedly Told Halloween Costumed Subordinate “You’re a Sexy [Expletive Deleted]!”

by Michael Kraut

If you’ve been arrested for a Los Angeles lewd conduct charge, understand that you are not the only one who’s ever had to face public humiliation, frustration, and the need for damage control.

Consider, for instance, the very public case of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Chief of Staff, Suzanne Barr, who resigned her position last week, after being dogged by accusations by her subordinates that she engaged in multiple instances of lewd behavior.

The accusations against Barr first arose in an ICE employee’s lawsuit against Janet Napolitano, the Director of the Department of Homeland Security. The lawsuit said that Barr allowed a frat house like environment to develop at ICE. For instance, they said that, while discussing Halloween costume plans, she told one subordinate “you’re a sexy [expletive deleted]” while “looking at his crotch” and then she enquired “how long is it, anyway?”

Published on: September 20, 2012

Los Angeles Medicare Fraud Conviction Nets L.A. Physician’s Assistant 6 Years in Jail

by Michael Kraut

50-year-old David James Garrison was sentenced to 72 months behind bars last week for his involvement in a Los Angeles Medicare scam that bilked the federal government out of nearly $19 million. On top of his lengthy jail term, Garrison was ordered by a U.S. District Judge to pay nearly $25,000 in restitution to several defendants.

The charges concerned Garrison’s involvement in a Los Angeles Medicare fraud scam that ran from early 2007 through the fall of 2008. Garrison and other co-conspirators, including Edward Aslanyan, operated a sophisticated shell game. The scam had many “threads.” One of the biggest money makers involved a scheme to recruit Medicare beneficiaries to write and collect prescriptions for power wheelchairs. Garrison and his conspirators resold these ill begotten wheelchairs to wholesalers at an enormous markup. For instance, they might have paid $900 for a wheelchair and billed Medicare for $5,000 for it. Garrison was also involved in writing illegal prescriptions and ordering fraudulent diagnostic tests for at least six different L.A. doctors.

A federal jury convicted Garrison in June on six counts of Los Angeles healthcare fraud, one count of aggregated identity theft, and one count of conspiracy to commit medical fraud in Southern California.

Published on: September 18, 2012

Petty Theft Conviction in Los Angeles Will Make LL Cool J’s Burglars’ Defense That Much More Complicated

by Michael Kraut

Could a conviction for petty theft in Los Angeles (e.g. for shoplifting some t-shirts or clothes) ultimately land you a 30-year prison conviction and $1.1 million bail?

If that scenario sounds far-fetched, think again.

It’s a reality for 56-years-old Jonathan Kirby, who was charged last week with breaking into rapper LL Cool J’s house. Kirby apparently picked the wrong house to burglarize. When the NCIS: Los Angeles star woke from his slumber around 2 AM, Cool J – a.k.a. James Todd Smith – confronted Kirby and got into a brawl with him. Cool J smashed up Kirby’s nose and broke his ribs and jaw before detaining the intruder and holding him there. Police believe Cool J acted in self-defense, and no charges against have been filed against him.

Published on: September 13, 2012

Sophisticated Computers May Prove the Bane of Los Angeles Medicare Fraud Defendants

by Michael Kraut

If you’ve recently been investigated or arrested for Medicare or MediCal fraud in Southern California, prepare for serious challenges.

According to a recent NPR report, the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. “Obamacare”) has empowered federal investigators to identify and prosecute fraud like never before. Peter Budetti, an anti-fraud manager at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said the federal government is now “able to verify whether a person was being treated by two different physicians in two different states on the same day or a variety of other possibilities,” thanks to powerful anti-fraud computer software. These systems are roughly analogous to systems that credit card companies use to suss out suspicious buying patterns.

The anti-fraud computer systems may spark a paradigm shift in terms of how the government suppresses fraud. The old/current paradigm is often known as the “pay and chase” model. Here’s how it works:

Published on: September 10, 2012

Big, Garish Los Angeles Medicare Fraud News: Ting Huan Tai Allegedly Defrauded Benefits Programs of $30 million to Buy Lamborghini (Among Other Things)

by Michael Kraut

If you have come under investigation for a serious Los Angeles Medicare fraud or Medi-Cal fraud crime, be thankful your situation is probably not as bad as 34-year-old Ting Huan Tai’s.

Tai allegedly ran a massive scam out of his New York City apartment (designed by the architect Frank Gehry). Federal prosecutors say that Tai stole the identify of a doctor and then used that identity to procure millions and millions of dollars of Medicare and Medi-Cal funds by billing for radiological services that no one ever provided to patients. Tai worked with this doctor before nabbing his identity.

Authorities seized Tai’s blue Lamborghini, among other possessions, and his parents had to put up their Great Neck home and other assets to pay his $2 million bond. So far there hasn’t been a grand jury indictment; rumor are swirling that the defendant is maneuvering to get a plea deal. If convicted of all the charges against him, Tai could face a decade behind bars.

Published on: September 4, 2012

Lewd Conduct in Los Angeles News – Priest Says “Not Guilty” to Accusations that He Exposed Himself at a National Park

by Michael Kraut

Accusations of lewd conduct in Los Angeles can ruin a defendant’s life, even if that defendant manages to get the charges dismissed.

If you recall our blog post earlier in summer about the nearly two dozen men busted for lewd conduct in Manhattan Beach at a beachside bathroom, you may remember the desperately frustrated comments made by the men and their supporters. Why the desperation? Because just having your picture published under the headline “arrested for lewd conduct” can have massive implications for your career, your relationships, and your self-esteem for years to come, since “stuff” on the internet tends to live forever.

Consider these concepts as we talk about the recent arrest of 58-year-old Rev. Feliciano Torres Mofan, who was busted for lewd conduct in an undercover sting operation at China Camp State Park. The Northern California priest just pled not guilty to the misdemeanor lewd conduct charges. Park rangers nabbed in during a sting they launched in response to a proliferation of web posts about sexual liaisons at the park. Rev. Mofan is a retired priest-in-residence at a local church, but he does not teach in any of the parish’s schools.