OFFICE of the ATTORNEY GENERAL for IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michael Pennington January 31, 2002 (775) 684-1112 ATTORNEY GENERA
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STATE OF NEVADA OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 100 N. Carson Street Carson City, Nevada 89701-4717 FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA Telephone (775) 684-1100 THOMAS M. PATTON Attorney General Fax (775) 684-1108 First Assistant Attorney General WEBSITE: http://ag.state.nv.us E-Mail: [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Michael Pennington January 31, 2002 (775) 684-1112 ATTORNEY GENERAL HAS NEW PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER Carson City—Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa is pleased to announce that Tom Sargent has been tapped as Public Information Officer for the Attorney General’s office. Tom comes to the position with communications, technology and management experience in both the public and private sector, most visibly as the Director of TMCC’s Institute for Business and Industry. He will be the liaison between the Attorney General’s office and the media, as well as managing special projects during the remainder of her term. “Tom has an interesting mix of experience that will be of particular value now as we work to fulfill our commitment to citizens and consumers over this coming year. In addition to assisting us with keeping the public informed, we have a number of projects for him that will benefit the State both now and in the future,” Del Papa said. Tom will operate from the Attorney General’s Carson City office. He fills the position vacated by Steve George, who has since taken a position with Secretary of State Dean Heller. ### STATE OF NEVADA OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 100 N. Carson Street Carson City, Nevada 89701-4717 FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA Telephone (775) 684-1100 THOMAS M. PATTON Attorney General Fax (775) 684-1108 First Assistant Attorney General WEBSITE: http://ag.state.nv.us E-Mail: [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tim Terry January 31, 2002 (775) 687-4704 COMPANY AND PRESIDENT PLEAD GUILTY TO MEDICAID FRAUD Las Vegas—Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa announced today that Reliable Medical Care, Inc. and its President, Lilliana Vazquez Mirchou, appeared in Clark County District Court, Department XI, Judge Michael L. Douglas presiding, to plead guilty to Medicaid Fraud allegations. Ms. Mirchou, both individually and as the officer of Reliable Medical Care, Inc. along with her brother, Rogelio Vazquez, were originally charged with four counts of Felony Medicaid Fraud - Submitting False Claims and two counts of Gross Misdemeanor Medicaid Fraud. Each felony carried a potential of four years incarceration and a $5,000.00 fine. “When a company agrees to provide services for Medicaid recipients, it enters into a position of trust with all Nevadans,” Del Papa said. “When a company violates that trust, the operators may be held personally liable.” Reliable Medical Care, Inc., pled guilty to single counts of both Felony Medicaid Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Medicaid Fraud. Additionally, Ms. Mirchou entered a no contest plea to a single gross misdemeanor count of Medicaid Fraud: Failure to Maintain Records. Judge Douglas accepted the pleas and rendered both defendants guilty. Sentencing will be on July 16, 2002. Ms. Mirchou will also pay the State of Nevada $400,000 for restitution, penalties, and costs. Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) Director Tim Terry said the charges stem from an investigation into allegations that Mirchou’s company was improperly billing for services that either did not occur or were provided by someone other than the person listed on the billing claim. Rogelio Vasquez was allegedly employed in the billing department and has an outstanding warrant for his arrest. Anyone with questions about Medicaid fraud or the Attorney General’s policy towards those who are voluntary self-reporters of provider fraud is urged to contact the MFCU in Carson City at (775) 687-4704 or in Las Vegas at (702) 486-3420. Medicaid fraud information can also be found on the Attorney General’s web site at http://ag.state.nv.us. # # # # STATE OF NEVADA OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 100 North Carson Street Carson City, Nevada 89701-4717 FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA Telephone (775) 684-1100 THOMAS M. PATTON Attorney General Fax (775) 684-1108 First Assistant Attorney General WEBSITE: http://www.ag.state.nv.us E-Mail: [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Kateri Cavin January 30, 2002 (775) 684-1218 ATTORNEY GENERAL FILES SUIT ON BEHALF OF SECRETARY OF STATE AGAINST DELINQUENT CANDIDATES Carson City—Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa announced today that her office has filed suit against 18 candidates who either failed to file Contribution and Expenditure Reports (C&E Reports) during the 2000 election cycle, or filed their C&E Report late and have failed to pay fines imposed by Secretary of State Dean Heller. These candidates have also failed to respond to correspondence from the Attorney General’s office. “One of the responsibilities of this office is to represent constitutional officers, so on behalf of the Secretary of State we are pursuing these lawsuits,” Del Papa stated. Heller said, “As the state’s chief elections officer, I take my responsibility to require candidates to adhere to Nevada’s disclosure statutes very seriously. I believe very strongly in the public’s right to know and have worked hard during my tenure as Secretary of State to pass legislation requiring full financial disclosure by candidates.” Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) 294A.120 and 294.200 require every candidate for state, district, county or township office to file a C&E Report. Each candidate in the state of Nevada is presumed to have knowledge of the laws when he/she files their declaration of candidacy. At that time, each candidate receives instructions from the filing officer notifying the candidate of his/her requirement to file timely C&E Reports. Additionally, at the time candidates file for office, they are provided with and sign an acknowledgement wherein they swear that they understand that: (1) they received the required forms and filing date schedule; (2) they must file the forms by the specified statutory date for each reporting period; (3) a violation of the reporting requirements set forth in NRS chapter 294A may result in a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for each violation, in addition to payment of court costs and attorney’s fees; and (4) they must file the required reports even though they neither received campaign contributions nor made campaign expenditures, withdrew their candidacy, had no opposition, lost the primary, or their name did not appear on either the primary or general election ballot. -more- “Protecting Citizens, Solving Problems, Making Government Work” Prior to referring the cases to the Attorney General’s office, the Secretary of State’s office sent several notices to each of the delinquent candidates informing them of the need to file their C&E Reports and that they risked the possibility of additional fines if they failed to do so. # # # # List of candidates attached. C&Es – Court Complaints Filed Marion Bennett ($5,750) – did not file #3 Assembly – Clark Vickie Cross ($3,275) – filed #2 late School Board – Nye Chuck Geshlider ($15,000) – no filings Pahrump Town Board - Nye Byron Goynes ($5,150) – filed all three late Assembly – Clark Christopher Grant ($25) – filed #2 late Assembly – Clark Craig Jorgenson ($15,000) – no filings District Judge - Nye Robert Koger ($5,000) – did not file #3 Fire District – Humboldt Danny Lunsford ($10,050) – did not file #2 and #3 Fernley Town Board - Lyon Carol McCracken ($50) – filed #3 late School Board - Storey Verla Purdy ($75) – filed #2 late Public Administrator - Nye Chester Richardson ($15,000) – no filings Assembly – Clark Sean Ryan ($225) – filed #1 late Fernley Swim Pool GID - Lyon Bradley Smith ($225) – filed #2 late Assembly – Clark Diane Titus ($15,000) – no filings Fernley Swim Pool GID – Lyon Roland Weddell ($11,775) – filed all 3 late Justice of the Peace – Carson City Jeff White ($5,100) – did not file #3 County Commission – Clark Lee Wilson ($525) – filed #1 late School Board - Storey Jane Wisdom ($25) – filed #1 late Pahrump Town Board - Nye C&E press 102 STATE OF NEVADA OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 100 N. Carson Street Carson City, Nevada 89701-4717 FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA Telephone (775) 684-1100 THOMAS M. PATTON Attorney General Fax (775) 684-1108 First Assistant Attorney General WEBSITE: http://ag.state.nv.us E-Mail: [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Marta Adams January 25, 2002 (775) 684-1237 ATTORNEY GENERAL CITES TECHNICAL REVIEW BOARD’S FINDING AS MORE EVIDENCE OF DOE’S PREMATURE ACTION Carson City—Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa cites a finding of the President’s Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board as more evidence that the Department of Energy is moving forward with the Yucca Mountain Project without an adequate scientific foundation. In a letter from the Board to the Secretary of Energy, the Board states that “when the DOE’s technical and scientific work is taken as a whole, the Board’s view is that the technical basis for the DOE’s repository performance estimates is weak to moderate at this time.” “The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board’s assessment of the weak foundation upon which the DOE is proceeding, combined with the recent findings of the General Accounting Office, show that DOE is not proceeding on sound science but is instead rushing to a judgment that is not supported by science at all,” stated Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa. “Certainly, if Secretary of Energy Abraham goes ahead with a site recommendation, as he has indicated he will, his action takes place with an incomplete and weak to moderate technical basis,” explained Del Papa.