Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Jocelyn E. Strauber, the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Investigation; and Lucy Lang, the Inspector General for the State of New York, announced the unsealing of three indictments charging one current and two former correction officers employed by the New York City Department of Correction at Rikers Island with healthcare fraud, mail fraud, and false statements related to healthcare matters.
Todd Faustin, Jovanny Concepcion, and Steven Murphy were arrested earlier and presented this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger. Their cases are assigned to U.S. District Judges Loretta A. Preska and Lewis J. Liman.
As alleged in the indictments, the New York State Worker’s Compensation Board administers New York State’s no-fault workers’ compensation system, which guarantees medical care and cash benefits to people who are injured at work, including DOC employees.
Payments by the Board made to DOC employees are paid from the New York City Treasury.
For years, Faustin, a current DOC employee, and Concepcion and Murphy, who were both formally employed by DOC, were DOC correction officers assigned to work at Rikers Island.
During that time period, each defendant engaged in a years-long scheme to falsely claim that they were injured while on duty at Rikers Island during incidents with incarcerated individuals requiring the use of force. To effectuate this scheme, each defendant made false statements to the board, their own physicians, and independent medical examiners, claiming these fake injuries.
In total, Faustin received $469,705.39 in benefits to which he was not entitled; Concepcion received $232,427.97; and Murphy received $294,037.83.
Concepcion, 33, of New York, New York, is charged with one count of healthcare fraud and one count of mail fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of making false statements related to health care matters, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Murphy, 31, of New York, New York, is charged with one count of healthcare fraud and one count of mail fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of making false statements related to health care matters, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Faustin, 43, of New York, New York, is charged with one count of healthcare fraud and one count of mail fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of making false statements related to health care matters, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
