Akin Gump Lawyer Charged With Trying to Sell Sealed WB Suit

A Washington lawyer at a prominent firm was arrested in a disguise while trying to sell a copy of a secret lawsuit involving a company that was under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department.

Jeffrey Wertkin was picked up Jan. 31 in the lobby of a hotel in Cupertino, California, where he believed he was about to collect $310,000 for selling the lawsuit, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Wertkin, who worked in Washington for Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, believed he would hand a copy of a complaint to an employee of the company, which was accused in the complaint by a whistle-blower of falsely billing the government. Wertkin, who was wearing a wig and using the name of Dan, was met instead by an FBI agent, according to arrest documents unsealed on Feb. 6.

“My life is over,” Wertkin told the agent. read more »

Jeffrey Wertkin Attempted to Earn US$310k in Bitcoin By Selling Whistleblower Evidence

Demanding a fee of US$310,000 is quite steep for such potentially useless information, though.

It is rather strange to think of a law firm partner looking to sell confidential information in exchange for bitcoin. Jeffrey Wertkin, a former partner at Akin Gump, did exactly that. In fact, he even went as far as using a fake name and wearing a wig. That disguise did not prevent him from getting arrested by the FBI last week, though. Selling a copy of a sealed whistleblower complaint to a company being investigated by the FBI is one of the dumbest ideas ever read more »

Wearing Wig, Lawyer Tried to Sell Confidential Document, U.S. Charges

A man in a gray Titleist hat entered the lobby of the Hilton Garden Inn in Cupertino, Calif., carrying a blue duffle bag. His instructions were to walk past the water station to his left and sit on a chair that had a newspaper on it.

He was there to meet someone named Dan, who had a copy of a complaint in a secret whistle-blower case that had been filed against a Silicon Valley technology security company. Dan had contacted an executive of the company offering to provide the sealed court document in exchange for a $310,000 “consulting fee,” government officials say.

But the man in the gray hat was not from the tech company. He was an F.B.I. agent.

And “Dan” — who was wearing a wig — turned out to be Jeffrey Wertkin, a former government lawyer who specialized in suing companies for Medicare fraud. He had recently joined a prestigious Washington law firm as a partner to defend companies against such cases. read more »

Health Services Contractor Agrees to Pay $3.818 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations for Double-Charging And Mischarging Medical Services on Internal Revenue Service Contract

Whistleblower Collects Reward

Baltimore, Maryland – Comprehensive Health Services, Inc. has agreed to pay the United States $3,818,881 to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that it submitted false claims to the United States by double-billing and mischarging for medical services in connection with work performed on an Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) contract. read more »

Wells Fargo Probably Isn’t Going to Give Its CEO a Bonus for Last Year

Wells Fargo 's board is likely to eliminate 2016 bonuses for the bank's top executives following the bogus account scandal, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The board met in late January and discussed withholding bonuses for senior executives, including Chief Executive Timothy Sloan and Chief Financial Officer John Shrewsberry, the WSJ said.

The board is expected to finalize its decision, which could affect annual incentive awards that are paid in cash or stock, in coming weeks. read more »

Dr. Gary Marder and the United States Consent to a Final Judgement of Over $18 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations

Gary L. Marder, D.O., a physician residing in Palm Beach County and the owner and operator of the Allergy, Dermatology & Skin Cancer Centers in Port St. Lucie and Okeechobee, and the United States of America have stipulated to a consent final judgment of over $18 million to settle False Claims Act allegations against Dr. Marder. Co-defendant, Robert I. Kendall, M.D., a physician practicing in Coral Gables, has also agreed to pay the United States $250,000 to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act. read more »

Ex-Sleepy's exec says he was lured into alleged 'Hamilton' Ponzi scheme

The former president of U.S. mattress chain Sleepy's says he was lured into bed with an alleged Ponzi scheme investment involving ticket resales for the Broadway blockbuster Hamilton and other hit shows.

Adam Blank says he and several trusts lost $1.5 million after broker-dealer Tripoint Global Equities and related companies and individuals convinced him to invest in what they billed as a "can't lose" deal, according to a civil lawsuit filed Monday.

Instead, the investment turned out to be what federal authorities last month alleged was a scam that raised more than $81 million for a phony investment based on reselling large blocks of tickets to Hamilton, concerts by singer-songwriter Adele, and other high-demand events. read more »

Trump rule chills Energy Dept. nuclear whistleblowers

Like a stinging winter wind, Trump administration action gives a chill to Energy Department whistleblowers.

The department has temporarily halted an Obama administration regulation permitting civil penalties against federal nuclear contractors that retaliate against whistleblowers who report waste, fraud and dangerous conditions.

In procedural rules published in the Federal Register, the Energy Department said the regulation would be frozen from Jan. 31 until March 21 in keeping with President Trump’s “plan for managing the Federal regulatory process at the outset of the new Administration.”

A department summary of the rule says it “stays DOE regulations for the assessment of civil penalties against certain contractors and subcontractors for violations of the prohibition against an employee who reports violations of law, mismanagement, waste, abuse or dangerous/unsafe workplace conditions, among other protected activities, concerning nuclear safety.” read more »