91吃瓜网

  1. Home
  2. 91吃瓜网
  3. Whistleblower Representation
  4. Recent Government Enforcement
  5. State Enforcement Actions
Have a Claim?

Click here for a confidential contact or call:

1-347-417-2192 
								
			


								
						
			


								
			

	
Whistleblower Quiz

	
Would you blow the whistle?

 Take our Quiz


									
	
						

		

			
			

				

					
State Enforcement Actions

					
Each state enforces its laws and defends its interests, and states often work with the federal government in investigating and prosecuting corporate frauds. 聽Whistleblowers with knowledge of fraud or wrongful conduct that involves state or local funds or programs may be able to bring a claim under a state or local False Claims Act, and may be eligible to receive a monetary reward and protection against retaliation.


Below are summaries of recent settlements, successful prosecutions, and enforcement actions by states.聽If you believe you have information about fraud which could give rise to a claim under a State or Local False Claims Act or other whistleblower reward provision, please contact us to speak with one of our experienced whistleblower attorneys.

				

			

			
						
					
			

	
		
		

			

				
				
May 10, 2016

				 Illinois announced two settlements with Peoples Gas Light and Coke Company (Peoples) and its parent company, Integrys Energy Group, which is owned by WEC Energy Group Inc. (WEC), totaling $18.5 million to resolve an Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) investigation and Madigan鈥檚 own investigation into Peoples鈥� misleading statements about the cost of its Accelerated Main Replacement Program (AMRP). The settlements stem from petitions filed last year by Madigan and the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) with the ICC following a shocking audit report that found Peoples鈥� AMRP could cost consumers $8 billion, an estimate the company now admits it withheld from the ICC in a hearing in advance of the ICC鈥檚 approval of its 2015 merger with WEC. Prior to its merger with WEC, company executives estimated the cost of the program at $4.5 billion. 				 			
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
May 9, 2016

				 New York announced that Steven Croman, a major New York City landlord with more than 140 apartment buildings across Manhattan, surrendered on multiple felony charges for his role in an alleged scheme to fraudulently obtain several multi-million dollar refinancing loans between 2012 and 2014. Croman was also named, along with private investigator Anthony Falconite, in a civil suit filed by the Attorney General鈥檚 office for allegedly engaging in illegal, fraudulent, and deceptive conduct in connection with Croman鈥檚 real-estate business. The lawsuit alleges that Croman directs an illegal operation that wields harassment, coercion, and fraud to force rent-regulated tenants out of their apartments and convert their apartments into highly profitable market-rate units. The lawsuit further alleges that Croman deployed Falconite, a former New York City police officer, to frighten and intimidate rent-regulated tenants into surrendering their apartments. 				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Housing and Mortgage Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
May 6, 2016

				 New York announced the sentencing of the remaining three defendants in an elaborate bid-rigging conspiracy that illegally steered multi-million dollar public works contracts for Monroe County to favored and connected companies, resulting in the restraint of competition. The four defendants were originally indicted in November 2013 and charged with a scheme to rig the bidding processes for a number of multi-million dollar public works contracts in Monroe County.  Those contracts included a $99 million contract to provide upgrades and maintenance for the County鈥檚 IT infrastructure (the 鈥淚T project鈥�), and a $212 million contract to provide upgrades and maintenance for the County鈥檚 public safety and security systems (the 鈥淧ublic Safety project鈥�).  				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Bribery and Bid-Rigging, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
May 3, 2016

				 Pennsylvania joined with other states and the federal government in a $306 million civil settlement that resolves allegations that Olympus America, Inc. and some of its subsidiaries paid illegal kickbacks to healthcare providers. The settlement was the result of a whistleblower lawsuit 鈥� United States et al., ex rel. John Slowik v. Olympus America, Inc., et al 鈥� filed in New Jersey. The lawsuit alleged that Olympus used improper financial incentives to induce doctors and hospital executives to buy a wide ranging array of its endoscopes and other surgical equipment, and to thereby unlawfully increase sales and gain market share. PA, 				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Anti-Kickback and Stark, 
													  FCA Federal, 
													  Medical Devices and DME, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
May 3, 2016

				 New York announced a settlement with Aby J. Rosen, a major contemporary art collector, for failing to pay millions in sales and use taxes on art acquisitions made by his companies. Rosen will pay $7 million following the Attorney General鈥檚 investigation into the use of resale certificates. The Attorney General alleges that beginning in 2002, Mr. Rosen bought or commissioned more than $80 million worth of contemporary art, but did not pay applicable State and City sales and use taxes on the purchases.  Between 2002 and 2015, Mr. Rosen used two companies, known as 22nd Century Acquisitions LLC and Lever House Artwork LLC, to purchase and, in Lever House Artwork鈥檚 case, commission artwork, claiming an exclusion from sales tax on the basis that the purchases and commissions were for resale. 				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Tax Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 29, 2016

				 Michigan announced that a judge has ordered Shawn Dicken, of Bay City, to pay $663, 531.48 in restitution for her role in an extensive multi-county Ponzi scheme. Dicken was convicted in 2014 after an Attorney General investigation and sentenced to 140 months to 20 years in prison. Beginning in 2011, Dicken was employed as the lead salesperson for The Diversified Group Advisory Firm LLC, an investment company. During her tenure with Diversified, Dicken misrepresented the investments she marketed to investors, saying investments offered by Diversified were without risk, completely liquid, featuring a guaranteed rate of return of between 9.5% and 10.44%. Dicken failed to disclose the risks associated with the actual investment in question 鈥� a highly leveraged real estate investment that could result in the loss of all of the investors鈥� money. Many investors, including senior citizens, risked their life savings.  Dicken swindled investors out of more than two million dollars and investigation revealed she took an eight percent commission, pocketing approximately $160,000 for herself. 				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Ponzi Schemes, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 27, 2016

				 New York announced settlements with six ticket brokers that, collectively, illegally resold hundreds of thousands of tickets in New York State since 2011, including on popular ticket resale platforms like StubHub and Vivid Seats.  The companies 鈥� TicketToad.com, Inc. of New Jersey, Charm City Entertainment LLC of Florida, Just In Time Tickets, Inc. of New York, A2Z Tix LLC of New York, Flying Falco Entertainment, Inc. (d/b/a Avery Tickets) of California, and All Events Utah, LLC of Utah  鈥� each illegally sold tickets to events in New York over the last several years without first obtaining the required license.  TicketToad, A2Z, Just In Time, Flying Falco Entertainment and All Events Utah also violated New York鈥檚 ticket laws by using illegal software (known as ticket 鈥淏ots鈥�) to purchase large numbers of tickets on websites such as Ticketmaster.com before the tickets could be obtained by consumers.  The settlements require that the companies and their principals maintain proper ticket reseller licenses, abstain from using Bots, and pay penalties for having operated illegally. The settlements require the six companies to pay a combined total of $2,760,000 in disgorged profits and penalties to the State. 				 			
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 27, 2016

				 New Jersey announced that 10 alleged members and associates of the New York-based Genovese organized crime family were indicted on charges including first-degree racketeering for allegedly reaping millions of dollars in New Jersey through illegal loansharking, unlicensed check cashing, gambling and money laundering, including laundering of drug proceeds. Another defendant was charged in connection with the laundering of drug money, and the wives of three of the defendants were charged with tax fraud, bringing the total defendants to 14. The charges stem from 鈥淥peration Fistful,鈥� a joint investigation by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice and the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, conducted with assistance from the New York and Queens County District Attorneys鈥� Offices and other law enforcement agencies. 				 			
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 27, 2016

				 Michigan and 34 other states reached an agreement in principle to settle allegations against Wyeth, a subsidiary of Pfizer, Inc. The settlement will resolve allegations that Wyeth knowingly underpaid rebates owed under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program for the sales, Protonix Oral and Protonix IV between 2001 and 2006. Both are drugs that are used to treat conditions such as acid reflux. Under the settlement Wyeth agreed to pay $784.6 million to the United States and the States. Over $371 million of this amount will go to the Medicaid Program. The settlement stems from two whistleblower lawsuits which were filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The United States, 35 states (including Michigan) and the District of Columbia intervened in the lawsuits. , , , 				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Drug and DME Pricing, 
													  FCA State, 
													  Medicaid, 
													  Multiple Whistleblowers and First-to-File, 
													  Pharma Fraud, 
													  Whistleblower Case, 
													  Whistleblower Rewards, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
April 25, 2016

				 New Jersey announced that 48 people were indicted on charges including first-degree racketeering in connection with an elaborate bank fraud scheme in which numerous defendants impersonated holders of legitimate business bank accounts in order to steal more than half a million dollars from the accounts, withdrawing most of the funds at casinos in Atlantic City. The defendants allegedly targeted business accounts at JP Morgan Chase Bank, stealing more than $570,000 from 27 business bank accounts in two schemes carried out between February 2011 and August 2012. 				 			
	
		
		
	


 			


											

						

								

									
1
…
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
…
78
								

						

					

												
		
 
	
 

 



	


	

		

			

								
							
Learn about Whistleblower Rewards Programs
			
	
		

		
	
			

									

													False Claims Act					  							State & Local False Claims Acts					  							SEC Program					  							CFTC Program					  							IRS Program					  					

								See More			
	
		

	
		

	




	


	

		

			

				

					

						
Newsletter

						
Subscribe to receive email updates from the 91吃瓜网blogs

					
	
				
	
			
	
			
	
				
Sign up for: