Attorneys for the defendants in a Miami Medicare fraud case are seeking to have charges dismissed against their clients after evidence implicating federal prosecutors have come to light.
Medicare fraud case pending
Dr. Salo Sharipo of Broward County was indicted in 2014 along with Sonia Gallimore and Marlene Cesar. They were accused of collecting $11 million after $55 million worth of false Medicare claims were filed through Biscayne Milieu, their mental health clinic.
Federal Prosecutors given confidential documents
Shapiro’s attorneys want his indictment thrown out after finding that confidential documents were being passed to federal prosecutors. Counsel for Gallimore and Cesar are filing similar motions.
Shapiro’s lawyers were compelled to use Ft. Lauderdale government contractor Imaging Universe to process confidential records. The owner of Imaging Universe, Ignacio Montero, passed CDs of the documents to the FBI and the Miami US Attorney’s office. Both federal offices claim to not have any prior knowledge of the documents and are now conducting internal investigations.
Charges should be dismissed say lawyers
Shapiro’s attorneys cite both the Fifth and Sixth Amendments (protection from self-incrimination and right to effective counsel) in the document breach as the records passed on to the prosecutor’s side implicate him and block his legal team’s ability to defend him.
If proven, the accusations of wrongdoing by the FBI and the Miami U.S. Attorney’s Office could have widespread impact on many other federal cases.
Any implications of criminal wrongdoing are severe. An experienced criminal defense attorney can help to safeguard your rights under the law. There are a myriad of details that go into a criminal investigation. It’s important to have a knowledable attorney on your side who can protect and fight for your rights.
Source:
Christensen, Dan. “Medicare Fraud Defense Team Accuses Miami Feds of ‘spying'” www.miamiherald.com. N.p., 4 June 2016. Web. 15 June 2016.