Nermin Awad El-Hadik, Health Care Fraud, Texas 2016
Austin, Texas - Nermin Awad El-Hadik, 42-year-old owner of Hope Pharmacy, Inc., in Houston, was sentenced to five years in federal prison for paying kickbacks in a health care fraud scheme.
According to the sentencing announcement, El-Hadik pleaded guilty on November 9, 2016, to a one count Information charging her with willful offer and payment of illegal remuneration in relation to a federal health care program.
The court also ordered that El-Hadik pay $5,334,303.04 restitution to the Department of Labor and be placed on supervised release for a period of three years after completing her prison term.
The scheme involved El-Hadik paying kickbacks to Garry Wayne Craighead, a chiropractor who organized and controlled multiple health care related entities, including eight clinics in Texas, that derived substantial revenue from Department of Labor health care benefit programs.
Craighead pleaded guilty on December 4, 2015, to one count of solicitation and receipt of illegal remunerations in federal health care programs and one count of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity.
He was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison and ordered to pay over $17 million restitution to the U.S. Department of Labor on June 10, 2016.
The U.S. Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command's Major Procurement Fraud Unit, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General conducted this investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys James Blankinship and Mark Marshall are prosecuting this case for the government.
The sentencing announcement was made by United States Attorney John F. Bash; Special Agent in Charge Christopher Cave, U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG), Southern Area Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Steven Grell, Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL OIG), Dallas Region; and, Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), San Antonio Division.
Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →