Pitts Sentenced for $7.5M Fraud

A shocking case of corporate greed has landed a former health care executive behind bars. MICHAEL DAVID PITTS, age 41, has been sentenced to 48 months in prison for his role in a wire fraud scheme that bilked Amedisys, Incorporated out of $7,641,528.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, PITTS pled guilty to the scheme, which involved creating shell entities and fictitious film tax credits to defraud the company. As the Vice President of Tax for Amedisys, PITTS was responsible for all corporate tax matters, including the preparation of state and federal tax returns and the payment of state income taxes.

The scheme, which lasted from October 2006 to May 2014, involved PITTS creating counterfeit companies, including Stonehenge Entertainment and Evergreen Incentives, to sell false and fictitious tax credit transfer agreements to Amedisys. PITTS used his position to present these agreements to his corporate supervisors for approval, falsely representing them as valid tax credits.

Once approved, PITTS would purchase the false and fictitious tax credit transfer agreements on behalf of Amedisys, and then divert the funds to his personal bank accounts. In total, PITTS caused Amedisys to make 21 wire transfers totaling $7,641,528 to accounts he controlled.

U.S. Attorney Walt Green stated, “Today Mr. Pitts’ insatiable greed landed him in jail for the next four years. He violated the trust that Amedisys placed in him for over nine years. During this extended period, he stole over $7.5 million dollars from a company who was duped by this unscrupulous individual.”

In addition to his prison sentence, PITTS was ordered to pay total restitution of $7,861,679 to Amedisys, Inc., its insurer, and Amedisys Political Action Committee. He was also ordered to forfeit assets of $7,641,528. The case was investigated by the FBI, with cooperation and support from Amedisys.

The sentence is a significant victory for the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI, who worked tirelessly to bring PITTS to justice. As SAC Jeffrey S. Sallet stated, “The FBI New Orleans Division, in conjunction with its partners at the USAO, will aggressively pursue those who engage in white collar crime and undermine the trust of their employers and the public.”

The case serves as a reminder of the importance of corporate accountability and the need for companies to scrutinize the actions of their executives. As the U.S. Attorney’s Office continues to crack down on white collar crime, it is clear that those who engage in such activities will be held accountable for their actions.