Justice Department Coordinates Largest-Ever Nationwide Elder Fraud Sweep

Attorney General Focuses on Threats Posed by Technical-Support Fraud

Attorney General William P. Barr and multiple law enforcement partners today announced the largest coordinated sweep of elder fraud cases in history, surpassing last year’s nationwide sweep. The cases during this sweep involved more than 260 defendants from around the globe who victimized more than two million Americans, most of them elderly. The Department took action in every federal district across the country, through the filing of criminal or civil cases or through consumer education efforts. In each case, offenders allegedly engaged in financial schemes that targeted or largely affected seniors. In total, the charged elder fraud schemes caused alleged losses of millions of more dollars than last year, putting the total alleged losses at this year’s sweep at over three fourths of one billion dollars.

Attorney General Barr was joined in the announcement by FBI Deputy Director David L. Bowdich; Executive Associate Director Derek Benner for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Joseph Simons; Louisiana Attorney General and President of the National Association of Attorneys General Jeff Landry; Director Randolph Alles of the Secret Service; Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale; Barbara Stewart CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service; and former FBI director and CIA director Judge Webster and Lynda Webster.

The charges are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

“Crimes against the elderly target some of the most vulnerable people in our society,” Attorney General William P. Barr said. “But thanks to the hard work of our agents and prosecutors, as well as our state and local partners, the Department of Justice is protecting our seniors from fraud. The Trump administration has placed a renewed focus on prosecuting those who prey on the elderly, and the results of today’s sweep make that clear. Today we are announcing the largest single law enforcement action against elder fraud in American history. This year’s sweep involves 13 percent more criminal defendants, 28 percent more in losses, and twice the number of fraud victims as last year’s sweep. I want to thank the Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, which led this effort, together with the Department’s Criminal Division, the more than 50 U.S. Attorneys’ offices, and the state and local partners who helped to make these results possible. Together, we are bringing justice and peace of mind to America's seniors.”

A list of Elder Fraud cases by the Department of Justice is provided on this interactive map.

Since President Trump signed the bipartisan Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act (EAPPA) into law, the Department of Justice has participated in hundreds of enforcement actions in criminal and civil cases that targeted or disproportionately affected seniors. The Justice Department has likewise conducted hundreds of trainings and outreach sessions across the country since the passage of the Act. In February 2018, the Attorney General announced the largest elder fraud enforcement action in American history at the time, charging more than 200 defendants in a nationwide elder fraud sweep. In November 2018, Department of Justice and Department of Agriculture hosted the first Rural and Tribal Elder Justice Summitin Des Moines, Iowa.The Summit focused on supporting the efforts of elder justice professionals to combat elder abuse and financial exploitation in rural and tribal communities.

Technical-Support Takedown 2019

As part of the sweep, the Department of Justice and its law enforcement partners announced a tech-support fraud takedown, designed to combat an increasingly common form of elder fraud in which criminals trick victims into giving remote access to their computers under the guise of providing technical support. In 2018, technical-support schemes generated over 142,000 consumer complaints to the FTC’s Consumer Sentinel Network. Consumers 60 and over filed more loss reports on tech-support scams from 2015 to 2018 than on any other fraud category reported to the Consumer Sentinel Network.

The Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, the Criminal Division’s Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section, and 10 U.S. Attorney’s Offices brought cases against perpetrators of technical-support fraud. The FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and HSI partnered with the Justice Department in investigating these cases, and the FTC, several state Attorneys General and the U.K.’s City of London Police joined the effort by initiating their own cases. A fact-sheet with technical-support fraud case information can be found here.

“We’re committed to investigating financial fraud schemes against the elderly,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “We’ve dedicated additional resources to address a wide range of elder fraud threats, including technical-support fraud. Victims of these schemes often lose thousands of dollars or more apiece, which can cause significant harm to elderly victims and their caretakers. If anyone suspects that they – or a senior they know – may be a victim of fraud, we encourage them to report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.”

Transnational Criminal Organizations Committing Elder Fraud

“The sweep announced today brings the Postal Inspection Service to a landmark point in its battle against transnational criminal organizations committing mass mailing elder fraud,” said Chief Postal Inspector Barksdale. “In a recently unsealed case, two Canadians pled guilty and, thanks to the Spanish National Police, another was arrested in Spain for an alleged mail fraud scheme involving $180 million in losses to over one million victims. The Inspection Service has been at the forefront of protecting customers from fraud schemes for many years and we will continue to investigate and stop those who exploit older Americans for their own illegal gains.”

A fact-sheet with cases on mass mailing fraud can be found here.

Many of the cases brought as part of the elder fraud sweep announced today – including many of the technical-support fraud cases – allegedly involved transnational criminal organizations. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs worked with numerous countries to secure evidence and capture defendants. During the sweep period, defendants in elder fraud cases were extradited from Canada, The Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Jamaica, and Poland. A fact-sheet with examples of a few elder fraud cases involving extradition in which the Office of International Affairs played a substantial role can be found here.

Money Mule Initiative

In addition, in a novel approach, the Department of Justice and its law enforcement partners took comprehensive action against the money mule network that facilitates foreign-based elder fraud. Generally, a money mule is someone who transfers money acquired illegally in person, through the mails, or electronically, on behalf of others. Across the country, money mules receive fraud proceeds directly from victims and forward proceeds to perpetrators and ringleaders of fraud schemes—individuals who often reside in other countries. As part of the sweep, the FBI and the Postal Inspection Service took action against over 600 alleged money mules nationwide by conducting interviews, issuing warning letters, and bringing civil and criminal cases. Secret Service agents aided these efforts by seizing and forfeiting elder fraud proceeds in transit from victims to perpetrators.

“Homeland Security Investigations is committed to the fight against elder fraud in conjunction with the Justice Department, and our other law enforcement partners,” said Executive Associate Director Derek Benner. “HSI Special Agents across the country have worked to address illegal fund transfers, fraudsters operating technical-support schemes, and elder fraud of all varieties. We will continue to use creative solutions to protect our nation’s seniors from fraud; financial security is critical to homeland security.”

“The Secret Service is committed to aggressively investigating and disrupting organized criminal groups who prey on our most vulnerable citizens,” said Secret Service Director Randolph “Tex” Alles.“The results of the elder fraud sweep announced today demonstrate what can be achieved though incredible partnerships between federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.”

Public Education

The Department of Justice and its law enforcement partners focused the sweep’s public education campaign on technical-support fraud, given the widespread harm such schemes are causing. The FTC and State Attorneys General had an important role in designing and disseminating messaging material intended to warn consumers and businesses.

Public education outreach is being conducted by various state and federal agencies, including Senior Corps, a national service program administered by the federal agency the Corporation for National and Community Service, to educate seniors and prevent further victimization. The Senior Corps program engages more than 245,000 older adults in intensive service each year, who in turn, serve more than 840,000 additional seniors, including 332,000 veterans. Information on Senior Corps’ efforts to reduce elder fraud can be found here.

Global Efforts

Exceptional assistance from foreign law enforcement partners amplified the effectiveness of the Department’s initiative. The sweep announced today benefited greatly from the work of the International Mass-Marketing Fraud Working Group (IMMFWG), a network of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies from Belgium, Canada, Europol, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States. The IMMFWG is co-chaired by the Department of Justice and the FTC, and law enforcement in the United Kingdom, and serves as a model for international cooperation against specific threats that endanger the financial well-being of each member country’s residents. Due to the IMMFWG’s network of law enforcement, simultaneous technical-support fraud consumer education campaigns are being released in Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Elder Fraud Complaints

Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office of Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.

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Justice Department Coordinates Largest-Ever Nationwide Elder Fraud Sweep

Nursing Homes, Negligence, and Elderly Abuse

On Sept. 28, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced a new rule that guarantees patients and their families to nursing homes for abuse and negligence. The new rule bans pre-dispute arbitration clauses popular in nursing home contracts which have, in the past, contractually bound patients and family members to settle disputes in arbitration rather than the court system. Now, nursing homes can be sued in court if accused of wrongdoing.

The new rule is the latest step forward in a wave of calls for accountability in elder care and abuse prevention. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that more than five million Americans are affected by some form of elder abuse each year, and while state and federal government entities are focusing attention on the issue, elderly abuse can be difficult to identify and prevent. The elderly are especially prone to neglect, financial exploitation and emotional abuse.

While nursing homes should offer a safe haven for the elderly, abusive treatment can occur. Over the decades, nursing home staff throughout the U.S. have been accused of everything from sexually assaulting residents to sedating difficult patients with unnecessary drugs to neglecting patients to the point of dehydration and even death. With the rise of social media, some nursing home employees have been documented using Snapchat and Twitter to share explicit videos and images of their patients in embarrassing or abusive situations. As a result of recent investigations into these abuses, federal and state governments have moved to impose more restrictions on institutionalized elder care and to provide more support for at-risk seniors. The newly imposed rule allowing patients to sue nursing homes from negligence and abuse will shed further light on potential nursing home care infractions.

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Nursing Homes, Negligence, and Elderly Abuse

Justice Department and the Corporation for National and Community Service Expand Their Partnership to Provide Legal Aid to Victims of Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Today, the Department of Justice, through its Elder Justice Initiative and its Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency which administers AmeriCorps and other national service programs, are announcing Elder Justice AmeriCorps, a new grant program to provide legal assistance and support services to victims of elder abuse, neglect and exploitation and to promote pro bono capacity building in the field.  This effort will expand a partnership between the two agencies, which includes justice AmeriCorps, a legal aid program launched in 2014 by the Department of Justice and CNCS to serve vulnerable populations.

“The Department of Justice is committed to continuing to investigate and prosecute those who prey on our nation’s elders and to support and empower victims through programs like Elder Justice AmeriCorps,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch.  “As a prosecutor I have seen firsthand the devastating emotional, financial and physical consequences of elder abuse and exploitation.  Too often victims need legal assistance to help them address multiple issues, such as safe housing and medical care, but have trouble getting help at all, much less through one, comprehensive legal service provider.  This innovative program will offer the holistic delivery of comprehensive legal services for elder abuse victims.”

“We are very pleased to be expanding our partnership with the Department of Justice to protect vulnerable populations,” said CEO Wendy Spencer of the Corporation for National and Community Service.  “By harnessing the power of national service and encouraging a new generation of lawyers to assist victims of elder abuse and financial exploitation, we will raise awareness of and combat problems affecting millions of Americans each year.”

The Elder Justice AmeriCorps program, which is intended to complement existing Office for Victims of Crime grants to support the development of legal assistance networks providing comprehensive, pro bono legal services for victims of crime, will consist of a single grant to an intermediary organization that will support approximately 60 full-time AmeriCorps positions for each year of the two-year program.  Interested applicants can review the Notice of Funding Opportunity at http://www.nationalservice.gov/build-your-capacity/grants/funding-opportunities/2016/americorps-state-and-national-grants-fy-2016#FGSAAA.

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The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through its AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, Social Innovation Fund and other programs and leads President's national call to service initiative, United We Serve.  For more information, visit nationalservice.gov.

The Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative supports the Department’s law enforcement efforts against nursing homes and other long-term care providers that provide grossly substandard care to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and coordinates the department’s elder justice policy and programmatic efforts.  For example, in September 2014, the Elder Justice Initiative launched the Elder Justice website, a resource for victims of elder abuse and financial exploitation and their families; practitioners who serve them; law enforcement agencies and prosecutors; and researchers seeking to understand and address this silent epidemic.

The Office for Victims of Crime administers the Crime Victims Fund.  OVC channels funding for victim compensation and assistance throughout the United States, raises awareness about victims’ issues, promotes compliance with victims’ rights laws, supports innovative programming for crime victims, including federal crime victims and provides training, technical assistance and  resources to practitioners who work with crime victims. 

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Office of the Attorney General

Updated September 30, 2015

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Justice Department and the Corporation for National and Community Service Expand Their Partnership to Provide Legal Aid to Victims of Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation

U.S. Department of Justice Launches the Elder Justice Website

The site – http://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/ offers resources for victims, family members, prosecutors, researchers, and anyone who works with older adults.

• Victims and family members will find information about how to report elder abuse and financial exploitation in all 50 states and the territories.

• Federal, State, and local prosecutors will find three different databases containing sample pleadings and statutes.

• Researchers in the elder abuse field may access a database containing bibliographic information for thousands of articles and reviews.

• Practitioners — including professionals of all types who work with elder abuse and its consequences — will find information about resources available to help them prevent elder abuse and assist those who have already been abused, neglected or exploited.

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U.S. Department of Justice Launches the Elder Justice Website

Court Upends 9-Year Fight on Housing Mentally Ill

A federal appeals court, ruling on procedural grounds, struck down on Friday a judge’s order that New York State transfer thousands of mentally ill adults in New York City from institutional group homes into their own homes and apartments. In doing so, the court brought a nine-year legal battle to an abrupt end without resolving the underlying issues of how the state cares for such patients.

Though the lower court judge had ruled the current system violated federal law by warehousing people with mental illness in far more restrictive conditions than necessary, the appellate panel said the nonprofit organization that began the litigation, Disability Advocates, did not have legal standing to sue.

The panel, comprising three judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, acknowledged that its decision essentially reset the long-running battle to its starting point.

“We are not unsympathetic to the concern that our disposition will delay the resolution of this controversy and impose substantial burdens and transaction costs on the parties, their counsel and the courts,” the opinion said.

Cliff Zucker, the executive director of Disability Advocates, who less than two years ago was celebrating the lower court’s order for immediate changes to the system, said he would now seek to reach a settlement with state officials. “We are hopeful that this administration has recognized that this is a problem that needs to be solved and we’ll be able to solve it without recommencing litigation,” he said.

Barring such a deal, it is also possible that the Justice Department, which intervened late in the case on behalf of the plaintiffs, could file a new lawsuit, Mr. Zucker said.

Disability Advocates brought the lawsuit in 2003 after a series of articles in The New York Times described a system in which residents were poorly monitored and barely cared for, left to swelter in the summer and sometimes subjected to needless medical treatment and operations for Medicaid reimbursement.

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Court Upends 9-Year Fight on Housing Mentally Ill

Dr. Richard Fine from 2010 and 2011

Full Disclosure Network presents a four-minute preview of hour long interview recorded in the L A County Central Men's jail with political prisoner Richard I Fine who has never been charged or conviced of a crime but has been held in solitary, "Coercive Confinement" for over a year. Dr. Fine holds a PhD in International Law and was an anti-trust attorney with the DOJ in Washington D.C. before he was ordered to jail in civil contempt of court. Listen to him describe the corruption in L A County and the Justice System is a threat to our American Democratic process and to the nation. Then he reveals his simple solution to ridding the corruption from our government.


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YouTube: California Justice System on Brink of Collapse

Void Court Orders and judgments result when a Judge does not have jurisdiction to be able to enter the order. In Judge Yaffe's case it was to due to taking $850,000 in payments from the County of Los Angeles, a party to the case. Under CCP Section 473 (d) a motion can be brought at any time to set aside the void judgment or order. So far four other Judges have been disqualified from sitting on Fine's Motion to Null and Void Judge Yaffe's Orders. They are Ann Jones, Robert O'Brien, Elihu Berle, and Carolyn B. Kuhl.


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Why Disqualified Judges Orders are Null and Void

Former Jasper County MO Administrator Rita Hunter Indicted for Fraud Scheme!

A former Jasper County Administrator is being indicted on a 200,000 fraud scheme.

A federal grand jury in Springfield accuses 59-year-old Rita Hunter of illegally obtaining federal medicaid and social security benefits and using them to subsidize the administration of her office.

The indictment includes two counts of health care fraud, two counts theft of public money, two counts social security and medicaid fraud, and four counts of document fraud.

The indictment alleges that hunter directed her employees to submit false medicaid applications for mentally disabled wards of the state.

According to the indictment, the applications said the individuals had assets below the $1,000 threshold, which is false.

Medicaid and social security benefits were allegedly then funnelled through the public administrators office.

Approximately $121,000 of the $200,000 200 was said to be used for administration fees, attorney fees, tax fees and court fees not related to the ward's medical care.

Hunter was the Jasper County Public Administrator from 2005 to 2008.

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Former Jasper County MO Administrator Indicted

Home Care Provider to Pay $150 Mil in Fraud Settlement

A national home health care provider has agreed to pay $150 million to settle allegations that it fraudulently billed Medicaid and other government programs for services that weren’t provided.

The agreement comes in a deal between Maxim Healthcare Services and the federal government in addition to more than 40 states.

Government officials had alleged that Maxim — which provides home health services to people with disabilities and other health needs — ran a “nationwide scheme” to bilk federal benefits programs out of over $61 million between 2003 and 2009.

The wrongdoing was first uncovered by Richard West, a New Jersey resident who noticed that Maxim had billed Medicaid for services he never received.

“This type of fraud uses patients as pawns in a game of corporate greed that puts cash over care, running up the bills on the very people our public health care programs are supposed to benefit,” said Tony West, assistant attorney general of the civil division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

“We take full responsibility for these events… and we are pleased to reach a settlement that will allow us to move forward with the important work of caring for our patients and clients who depend on us each and every day,” Maxim CEO Brad Bennett said in a statement.

In addition to the payments Maxim has agreed to make — which will be divided between the federal government and states — nine individuals including eight former Maxim employees have already pleaded guilty to felony charges related to the fraud allegations.

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Home Care Provider to Pay $150 Million in Fraud Settlement

Family Trying to Get DoJ Investigation

The Britt family of Buffalo, NY is fighting to rectify the atrocities perpetrated against their elderly aunt, Lula Baity. Eighty-six year old Lula Baity, a then resident of the Buffalo Municipal Housing Complex, went to the rental office on September 30, 2003 to inquire about her current month's rent payment. The money order had been returned to Ms. Baity, because the amount was deemed insufficient.

One hundred dollars and eighty-eight cents ($100.88) was remitted, as opposed to the one hundred eighty-eight dollars ($188.00), that would have served as the rental fee due for the month of September. Ms. Baity explained to the property manager that apparently, the corner store had made an error while issuing the money order. To assist Ms. Baity in resolving the discrepancy, the property manager directed her subordinate, a Housing Authority case management worker, to contact Ms. Baity's family and Family Services (a non-official agency, community based center, located within the housing complex).

The Housing Authority's case management worker did not assist Ms. Baity as instructed. Instead, she contacted Erie County Crisis Services, a community mental health outreach agency, with allegations that Lula Baity was not paying rent, was increasingly confused and disoriented, was unable to care for herself, and other false claims. The BMHA rental office was not an authorized reporting agency, approved by the Office of Mental Health. As the Housing Authority's case management worker, this employee's responsibilities fell within the scope of administrative and operational tasks, usually involving inspections and maintenance issues. It was not within her jurisdiction to request a mental evaluation of Ms. Baity. It has been confirmed however, that she identified herself, not as the Housing Authority's case management worker, but as Ms. Baity's "social worker." After her call and without verification of her credentials, actions were taken effecting the involuntary removal of Ms. Baity from the home she'd lived in for over forty years.

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Kidnapping and Confinement of Elderly African-American Woman Prompts Family's Request For Investigation By U.S. Dept of Justice