Workers' Compensation: United States Attorney

Showing posts with label United States Attorney. Show all posts

Saturday, August 30, 2014

South Carolina Man Sentenced for Knowing Endangerment by Release of Asbestos

United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Scott William Farmer, age 37, of Anderson, South Carolina was sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Spartanburg, South Carolina, for Knowing Endangerment by Release of Asbestos, a violation of 42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(5). United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis of Spartanburg sentenced Farmer to 41 months imprisonment and 3 years supervised release.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that between November 2012 and April 2013, Farmer and others working for Farmer demolished portions of Haynsworth Mill, located at 2115 McDuffie Street, Anderson, SC, in order to sell scrap metal from the building. The materials in the building contained hazardous levels of asbestos. Farmer was repeatedly warned by South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control to stop his demolition efforts because of the danger. Farmer continued tearing down the building and failed to take required precautions to safeguard his workers, individuals to whom he sold the metal from the Mill, and the public. On March 14, 2013, an Emergency Order was issued against Farmer to cease all activities on the site due to the hazardous levels of asbestos. In April of 2013, DHEC inspectors again located Farmer and another conducting demolition work on the contaminated site.

"Exposure to asbestos can cause serious health problems and in some cases may prove fatal,” said Maureen O’Mara, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s criminal enforcement program in South Carolina. “The defendant’s actions threatened not only the environment but the safety of his workers and the surrounding community. EPA and its law enforcement counterparts take seriously our obligation to investigate these violations and prosecute to protect the public's well-being." United States Bill Nettles stated, "The United States Attorney's Office is committed to protecting the citizens of South Carolina and our natural resources from hazardous pollutants such as asbestos. Our office will continue to prioritize the environmental work we do with both federal and state agencies, to ensure that our state is protected and others are deterred from breaking the law.."

The case was investigated by agents of the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Health and Environmental Control of South Carolina. Assistant United States Attorney Jamie Lea Schoen of the Greenville office prosecuted the case.

….

Jon L. Gelman of Wayne NJ is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise, Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (West-Thompson-Reuters). For over 4 decades the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have been representing injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.

Friday, June 27, 2014

Facebook Required to Turn Over User Information in Disability-Fraud Investigation

Today's ppost was shared from http://online.wsj.com

The Manhattan district attorney has won a legal battle against Facebook Inc. with a New York judge's ruling that the social network was required to turn over user information in a fraud investigation.

When workers who filed for federal disability money were seen on Facebook looking perfectly healthy, the Manhattan district attorney received a search warrant from a judge to look more closely at the accounts.

Facebook had attempted to quash the warrants for 381 user accounts on grounds that they were unconstitutional and in violation of Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.

After reviewing the search-warrant application, the judge found "probable cause that evidence of criminality would be found within the subject Facebook accounts," and ordered Facebook to comply.

“Due to the fungible nature of digital information, the ability of a user to delete information instantly and other possible consequences of disclosure, the court ordered the search warrants sealed and Facebook not to disclose the search and seizure to its users.”—Melissa C. Jackson, New York State Supreme Court Justice

The district attorney's office said the case led to 134 indictments on more than $400 million in fraud, and that half the defendants have pleaded guilty.

"This was a massive scheme involving as many as 1,000 people who defrauded the federal government," said Joan Vollero, spokeswoman for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. "The defendants in this case repeatedly lied to the government about their mental, physical, and social capabilities. Their Facebook accounts told a different story," she said.

The judge in the case said Facebook had no right to get in the way of the investigation.
"Facebook could best be...

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[Click here to VIEW the documents in this case (NYTime)]

Found on

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Khobragade Indicted on Fraud Charges

Today's post was shared by WSJ Law Blog and comes from blogs.wsj.com

Federal prosecutors in New York on Thursday announced the indictment of the Indian official whose arrest last month set off protests in India and strained relations between the nations.

The charges against Devyani Khobragade, though, were delayed amid uncertainty about whether she had fled the country. The consular worker is accused of submitting false documents to get a work visa for a babysitter and housekeeper in her Manhattan home. She has denied all the charges.

In a letter to U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin, Manhattan prosecutors said that a federal grand jury had voted to return an indictment against the 39-year-old Ms. Khobragade, charging her with two counts — visa fraud and making false statements.

Prosecutors initially said Ms. Khobragade had left the U.S. on Thursday. But they later learned that she may not have gotten on her flight, according to a person familiar with the matter. Her whereabouts were not immediately clear.

The U.S. Marshal’s Office last month said Ms. Khobragade had been strip-searched after she was arrested and “placed in a cell with other female defendants” as part of standard procedure.

Anger over her treatment prompted demonstrations in India and led the Indian government to revoke diplomatic privileges for American officials and remove security barriers near the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi.

Attempting to calm the situation, Secretary of State John Kerry last month “expressed his regret, as well as his concern...

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Friday, June 28, 2013

FDA Closes Down Illegal On-Line Pharmacies

Operation Pangea VI combats online sale and distribution of unapproved prescription medicines

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in partnership with international regulatory and law enforcement agencies, took action this week against more than 9,600 websites that illegally sell potentially dangerous, unapproved prescription medicines to consumers. These actions include the issuance of regulatory warnings, and seizure of offending websites and $41,104,386 worth of illegal medicines worldwide.

The action occurred as part of the 6th annual International Internet Week of Action (IIWA), a global cooperative effort to combat the online sale and distribution of potentially counterfeit and illegal medical products. As part of this year’s international effort – Operation Pangea VI – the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, in coordination with the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado, seized and shut down 1,677 illegal pharmacy websites. The effort ran from June 18 to June 25, 2013.

Many of these websites appeared to be operating as a part of an organized criminal network

that falsely purported its websites to be “Canadian Pharmacies.” These websites displayed fake licenses and certifications to convince U.S. consumers to purchase drugs they advertised as “brand name” and “FDA approved.” The drugs received as part of Operation Pangea were not from Canada, and were neither brand name nor FDA approved. These websites also used certain major U.S. pharmacy retailer names to trick U.S. consumers into believing an affiliation existed with these retailers.

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