Florida Criminal Defense Blog | Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group

Florida law introduces new penalties for distributing fentanyl

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Nov 13, 2019 | Drug Charges

In recent years, fentanyl has become increasingly common in the illegal drug market. Used in the medical field as a pain reliever for conditions like advanced cancer, the synthetic opioid pain reliever is a potent drug whose heroin-like effects can prove addictive and extremely dangerous when abused. Florida sees rise in fentanyl useUnfortunately, the United States has experienced a spike in fentanyl-related deaths. In 2017, fentanyl caused more than 28,000 deaths. Florida is no stranger to this growth in recreational use of the opioid.Florida Department of Law Enforcement Chief Forensic...

Tennessee Health Care Exec Sentenced To 3.5 Years In Federal Prison For Alleged Medicare Kickback Scheme

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Oct 21, 2019 | Government Fraud

A former health care executive in Tennessee was sentenced to 3-1/2 years in Federal prison last week on a guilty plea for her alleged involvement in a scheme to pay $4.6 million in kickbacks for illicit Medicare referrals. The 71-year-old woman is accused by prosecutors to have agreed to pay illegal kickbacks to the CEO of a pain management clinic in exchange for providing Medicare referrals for durable medical equipment (DME). Prosecutors say the CEO provided the referrals in exchange for 60 percent of the proceeds derived from Medicare. In order to obscure the illegal kickbacks,...

Nigerian Man Sentenced To 46 Months In Federal Prison After Pleading Guilty To Medicare Fraud

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Oct 15, 2019 | Drug Crimes

A Nigerian man living in Southern California was sentenced to almost four years in Federal prison after pleading guilty to involvement in a scheme to defraud Medicare via sales of durable medical equipment (DME). Investigators say that he and two other defendants paid cash kickbacks to patient recruiters and physicians for fraudulently prescribing DMEs to Medicare beneficiaries in cases where such instruments were not medically necessary. With such orders in hand, investigators say the trio's medical supply company submitted claims to Medicare for the unnecessary equipment, which they say...

Mental health providers accused of Medicaid fraud in Tallahassee

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Sep 19, 2019 | Government Fraud

Two mental health providers in Tallahassee have been indicted by a federal grand jury following accusations of over 80 counts of Medicaid fraud, aggravated identity theft and false statements related to health care.The case began after the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit started an investigation into the mental health providers. The indictment states that the manager of North Florida Mental Health and a signatory made false and fictitious claims for reimbursement and payment to Florida Medicaid and managed care organizations. They claim to have performed services including psychiatric diagnostic...

Woman sentenced to 4 years in prison for white collar crimes

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 21, 2019 | White Collar Crimes

White collar crimes don't involve violence, but they can impact many people's lives. Unfortunately, if you get caught participating in one of these activities, the penalties can be significant.Take, for example, this case out of Port St. Lucie. A woman, only 29 now, has been sentenced to four years in federal prison as a result of committing wire fraud and forgery. The woman admitted that she had committed wire fraud, forged securities and access device fraud in the time when she worked in four jobs in health-care billing. How did she do it? She called companies and pretended to be...

Florida Lottery Winners Arrested On Narcotics Charges Hours After Collecting Prize Money

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 31, 2019 | Criminal Charges, Drug Charges

Three Deltonia residents were jailed within hours of claiming a prize from the Florida lottery after police say they were discovered in possession of illicit drugs. According to Volusia County authorities, a 59-year-old woman and her 39-year-old son bought what ultimately proved to be a lottery ticket worth $22,000 in Orlando a few days before. Upon revealing that the ticket was a winner, the pair retrieved the prize money and returned to their home. Meanwhile, deputies obtained a search warrant for the premises, which they executed within hours of their arrival home. They say they saw the...

Should you fight back if accused of government fraud?

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 25, 2019 | Government Fraud

Defrauding the government is one of the worst things that a person can do in terms of white collar crimes. Government fraud convictions can lead to years behind bars and extensive fines.The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that theft accounts for over half of all fraud cases in the United States, and making false statements made up a quarter of additional cases. These cases included actions such as forgery, accepting bribes, extortion and others. Interestingly, when suspects were identified in relation to cases of fraud against the government, the GAO admits that only...

Trio Of Hezbollah Members Sanctioned By OFAC For Alleged Destabilizing Activities In Lebanon

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 18, 2019 | OFAC

Last week the Federal government announced sanctions against three Hezbollah political and security individuals for allegedly using their influence to cause the organization to assist Iran in destabilizing Lebanon.The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) says two of the three sanctioned individuals are members of Hisballah's parliament, while the third is a security official.The two parliament members allegedly use their office to advance Hezbollah's objectives, which OFAC says are in direct opposition with the best interests of the Lebanese government...

Hillsborough County Detention Deputy Facing Drunk Boating Charge In Citrus County

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 17, 2019 | Dui

A local deputy was apprehended earlier this month while in a vessel on Crystal River on allegations that he was operating the boat while inebriated.The Hillsborough County detention deputy was boating on the river on July 6 when officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission say they witnessed him operating his personal vessel in an unorthodox manner.The 35-year-old deputy did not perform well on field sobriety tests, according to the officers, and he refused to submit to a breath test for alcohol. In addition to intoxication, officers say they witnessed him boating in...

Clearwater Man Facing Vehicular Homicide Charge After Allegedly Striking Pedestrian

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 12, 2019 | Criminal Charges, Vehicular Crimes

A Clearwater man is facing vehicular homicide charges after Pinellas County authorities say he drove through a red light at a high rate of speed and struck a pedestrian in the crosswalk.St. Petersburg police say a 19-year-old man was driving at a high rate of speed on Central Avenue on June 26 when his 2007 Mercedes sedan approached the intersection of 58th Street North and the red light showing on its traffic signal.Per police, the vehicle was traveling at about 50 mph when it reached the intersection and struck a Hyundai sedan. Upon striking the Hyundai, the Mercedes then careened back...