Workers Devise Check Fraud Scheme
Two former employees of Blue Cross Blue Shield were sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the two former employees changed federal tax ID numbers of health care providers to individuals who were not health care providers. These individuals would then receive workers’ comp checks in the mail and cash the checks using bogus bank accounts.
Following an investigation by the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office two workers were sentenced to 13 months in prison and ordered to repay resititution of $80,000, their share of the scheme.
The balance of the $490,000 in illegal government checks, 116 checks, was cashed by co-conspirators for a total of $487,346 according to U.S. Attorney Walter Wilkins.
Employer Arraigned for Violating Massachusetts State’s Wage and Hour Laws
The owner of cleaning company was arraigned in Boston Municipal Court in connection with violating the state’s larceny, wage and hour, and worker’s compensation laws on charges of Larceny by Check over $250, Failure to Pay Wages (7 counts), Failure to Provide Suitable Pay Stub Record (4 counts), and Failure to Provide Workers Compensation Insurance Coverage. A plea of not guilty was entered on the defendant’s behalf and he was released on personal recognizance.
The Attorney General’s Fair Labor Division began an investigation after receiving multiple referrals from Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS) and the community based organization Chelsea Collaborative on behalf of affected workers, alleging that the employees of the cleaning service had not been paid for cleaning work performed for the company. (workersxzcompxzkit)
In addition to failing to pay employees, the owner bounced payroll checks, did not provide payroll stubs and failed to carry workers’ compensation insurance coverage, a requirement of the Commonwealth. Under Massachusetts law, employers must pay employees within six days of the termination of the pay period and provide a pay stub with proper information, including rates of pay and legal deductions.
Source: Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General. For information and a hotline number see http://www.massworkrights.com/
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The latest workers’ comp fraud blotter – http://law.lexisnexis.com/practiceareas/Workers-Compensation-Law-Blog/workers-compensation-fraud-/Workers-Comp-Fraud-Blotter-862009—-Recent-Arrests-Charges–Convictions
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