COVID-19 Hoarding, Price Gouging, Florida 2020

State: Florida
Category: Fraud &#038; Financial Crimes
Source: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/us-attorney-ariana-fajardo-orshan-seeks-support-south-florida-hospitals-fight-against" style="color:#cc0000;" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">DOJ Press Release ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Â Ã¢â‚¬â€

MIAMI, Fl. — In a desperate bid to stem the tide of COVID-19-related crime, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan has sent a letter to South Florida hospital executives, asking them to share information about individuals and companies that may be hoarding or price-gouging critical medical supplies.

“In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, our office is prioritizing the deterrence, investigation, and prosecution of wrongdoing related to the COVID-19 pandemic – including hoarding and/or price-gouging with regard to critical medical supplies,” said U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan.

According to U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan, her office is particularly concerned about individuals and companies that have acquired vital medical supplies in excess of what they would reasonably use, or for the purpose of charging exorbitant prices.

As part of her efforts to combat COVID-19-related crime, U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan has launched the Southern District of Florida COVID-19 Task Force, through which agencies can share information and coordinate law enforcement action.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan has also appointed AUSA Jon Juenger to lead her Office’s COVID-19 response, and is urging the public to report COVID-19-related fraud to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or to the email address disaster@leo.gov.

“We will not tolerate any attempts to take advantage of this pandemic for personal gain,” said U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan. “We are committed to investigating and prosecuting those who engage in COVID-19-related crime, and we urge the public to help us in this effort.”

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan’s efforts to combat COVID-19-related crime are part of a nationwide crackdown ordered by Attorney General William Barr on March 20, when he directed all 93 U.S. Attorneys to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of COVID-19 fraud.

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