Marks induced sales by misrepresenting the business opportunitys likely profits, the amount of money that prior buyers were earning, how quickly buyers were likely to recover their investment, the quality of locations that were available for the vending machines, and the level of location assistance that buyers would receive from outside locating companies. On August 6, 2018, the District Court permanently enjoined a group of entities and individuals alleged to have been involved for more than a decade in predatory mail fraud schemes that targeted primarily elderly victims throughout the world. Chicago Dietary Supplement Companies Ordered to Comply with FDCA United States v. Global Marketing Enterprises, Inc., et al.Press Release According to the complaint, FDAs analysis of environmental samples collected during two 2016 inspections revealed the presence of L. mono contamination in multiple locations throughout the facility. District Court Orders PharMedium Compounding Pharmacy and Two Executives to Comply with Drug Safety Standards United States v. PharMedium Services LLC, et al. );2:16-CR-316 (D.N.J.) The FDA has long warned against the use of SARMs, including stating in a publicly available 2017 warning letter that SARMs have been linked to life-threatening reactions including liver toxicity, and have the potential to increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. Smith sold a product called Miracle Mineral Supplement, or MMS, over the Internet. Crawford kept a percentage of the fraudulently withdrawn funds for himself and oversaw the transmission of the remaining amounts to co-conspirators in the Philippines. International Mass-Mailers Enjoined from Further Participation in Fraudulent Solicitation SchemesUnited States v. Alexander Quaglia, et al. Allen was also ordered to pay $117,000 in restitution. The United States alleged in a February 2018 complaint that defendants failed to abide by laws designed to protect consumers from consuming food that contained new animal drugs above legal limits. The settlement includes significant commitments by Moodys to improve its business practices, including: separation of Moodys commercial and credit rating functions; independent review and approval of changes to rating methodologies; changes to ensure that key personnel are not compensated on the basis of the companys financial performance; enhancing Moodys oversight over its press releases and methodology development; and certifications of compliance by the President/CEO of Moodys with these commitments for at least five years. After returning to the United States in 2008, Wall used phony names to obtain wholesale pharmaceutical licenses from several states in the hope of selling wholesale quantities of drugs directly to RX Limiteds dispensing pharmacies. Through a separate company that it contracted with to market and distribute LC Bead in the United States, Biocompatibles marketed LC Bead to deliver chemotherapy drugs a use that was never cleared or approved by the FDA. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. The verdict was the first ever in an action to enforce the Telemarketing Sales Rule and Do Not Call Registry rule. Dietary Supplement Companies Sentenced in Case Involving Alleged Link to Liver Damage, U.S. v. USPLabs, et al. Fla.). On February 19, 2021, the United States filed a civil complaint seeking to permanently enjoin the owners of a Tampa-area clinic and pharmacy from unlawfully dispensing opioids and other controlled substances. Our client reviews, law firm profiles, and live chat make it easy to find the best Civil Litigation lawyer for you. Chipotle Mexican Grill to Pay $25 Million Fine for Food Safety Violations, United States v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.Press release HICKEY v. ASTRAZENECA PHARMACEUTICALS LP et al. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for December 3, 2018. Sentencing hearings for Geissler, Doyle, and Patel are set for July 27, July 29, and August 10, 2020, respectively. On December 14, 2015, the district court entered a Consent Decree of Permanent Injunction against Bethel Nutritional Consulting and its owners. In pleading guilty, Parks admitted that, from approximately June 2017 to September 2019, he and his company, MedFitRX, unlawfully distributed selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) and other substances that the FDA has not approved, including Ostarine (MK-2866), Ligandrol (LGD-4033), and Testolone (RAD-140). As alleged in the information, Meds IV compounded various drugs for human use, including an intravenous drug known as Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN). FDA inspections over the past three years have revealed multiple and repeated violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) by Downing in the manufacture of compounded sterile injectable drugs. The settlement follows an investigation by the Consumer Protection Branch and the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of New Jersey into potential claims pursuant to the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA) and investigations conducted by various State Attorneys General pursuant to state law. Case No. Victims were instructed to send small processing fees typically $20 or $25 to claim the prizes. Fla.). Medical Device Manufacturer Ordered to Pay $85 Million Following Guilty Plea for Failing to File Adverse Event Reports United States v. Olympus Medical Systems Corp. Many of the victims were elderly. On January 28, 2021, U.S. District Judge Edward R. Korman granted the governments motion for summary judgment in a case seeking a permanent injunction against New York dietary supplement firm Confidence USA and its operators for continued alleged violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Press ReleaseDocket Number: 2:15-CV-1403 (E. D. (respectively). Contrary to these agreements, Turner sold the drugs to drug wholesalers at higher prices. Court Permanently Enjoins Texas Ready-to-Eat Fish Processor and Three Individuals from Processing and Distributing Adulterated FoodUnited States v. Topway Enterprises, Inc., et al. The indictment alleges that the remaining defendant, Andrea Burrow, opened victim return mail, sorted cash and other payments, and entered data from the victims responses into a database that the scheme used to target past victims with more fraudulent mailings. 1345 against three Vietnamese defendants, Thu Phan Dinh, Tran Khan, and Nguyen Duy Toan. Dominic Smith (no relation to Shashana Smith) was sentenced in October 2015 to 27 months in prison and one year of supervised release. The indictment alleges that Indivior obtained billions of dollars in revenue from Suboxone Film prescriptions by deceiving health care providers and health care benefit programs into believing that Suboxone Film was safer, less divertible, and less abusable than other opioid-addiction treatment drugs. 1:20-cr-20190(S.D. United States Seeks Preliminary Injunction Against Arkansas Compounding PharmacyUnited States v. Cantrell Drug Co. et al.Press Release The callers also falsely threatened victims with court proceedings, negative marks on their credit reports, imprisonment, or immigration consequences if they did not immediately pay for the purportedly delivered products and settlement fees. The letters falsely claimed recipients had won money or valuable prizes, such as luxury cars. Fla.) The court found that each of the defendants had violated the FDCA in the past, and that the court had scant assurance that defendants would comply with food safety laws going forward. Raventos was charged in September along with three other individuals. If you cannot find thecaseparty through thePACER Case Locator, then contact thefederal courtwhere you think the case was filedfor assistance. Defendant Sentenced in Connection with Lottery Scam Based in JamaicaUnited States v. Shashana Stacyann Smith Press Release Following controversy regarding the safety of DMAA, the defendants reformulated their products to contain a different substance called aegeline. The injunction requires L.A. Star and the Goldrings to cease all operations and requires that, in order for the defendants to resume distributing seafood products, the FDA must first determine that its manufacturing practices have come into compliance with the law. North Carolina Dietary Supplement Distributor Sentenced in Case Involving Synthetic Steroids. In conjunction with the filing of the complaint, the defendants agreed to settle the litigation and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction that prohibits them from committing violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. One of Robinsons co-conspirators, the title clerk who issued many of the fraudulent titles, was sentenced to five years of probation with 12 months of home detention in September 2016. Docket Number: 3:15-CR-496 (N.D. On May 9, 2019, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a civil penalty and injunction imposed by the district court against Spectrum Brands, Inc., a multinational consumer products distributor based in Madison, Wisconsin. One of his co-defendants will be sentenced in April, and another co-defendant is set for trial later this spring. The docket is 10 pages, so the charge is $1. On February 5, 2021, the court entered a stipulated preliminary injunction that superseded the temporary restraining order and prevents the defendants from dispensing controlled substance prescriptions written by a particular prescriber during the pendency of this case. The Court also found no reversible error related to the district courts loss calculations at sentencing, and ruled against the defendants on various evidentiary claims and other arguments. Court Orders West Texas Man to Stop Selling Purported COVID-19 Treatments, United States v. Michael Marc Travalino a/k/a Marc White Eagle Defendant Sentenced in Connection with a Lottery Scam Based in JamaicaUnited States v. Claude Shaw Press Release L.A. Star processed and distributed a variety of ready-to-eat fish products. Va.). He purchased high-mileage vehicles, then caused the vehicles odometers to be altered to reflect fraudulent, low-mileage readings. According to the complaint filed in the case, the defendants manufactured and distributed adulterated dietary supplements not prepared in compliance with current good manufacturing practices. On October 27, 2015, the district court sentenced Louis Daniel Smith to 51 months imprisonment and four years of supervised release. Eubank, who operated an automobile electronics repair shop in Midlothian, Virginia, acknowledged that between 2010 and 2016, he used various electronic tools to access motor vehicle odometers to lower the odometer readings of hundreds of vehicles. Calif.). A SIMPLE GUIDE TO FILING A CIVIL ACTION - United United States v. Parks/MedFit RX Defendant Pleads Guilty in Vending Machine Business Opportunity Case United States v. Kevin M. Marks, Docket Number: 2:16-CR-068 (E.D.N.Y.)(SJF). ); 2:14-CV-1156 (D.N.J. Docket Number: 2:17-CR-171 (E.D. Second Circuit Affirms Conviction and Sentence of Business Opportunity FraudsterUnited States v. Edward Morris "Ned" Weaver (Vendstar) Press Release The cases were consolidated for plea and sentencing in Puerto Rico. On August 25, 2017, the closing of the sale of defendants two condominiums in Costa Rica was finalized. This rule provides that the first step in an action is the filing of the complaint. On February 19, 2016, Joseph Dallal was sentenced to serve 33 months in prison in connection with two separate prescription drug diversion schemes. According to the plea agreement, Onyx was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a liquid embolization device that is surgically injected into blood vessels to block blood flow to arteriovenous malformations in the brain.. Fla.). Lledo is the third defendant to plead guilty in connection with the scheme. Two of the individual defendants, Jacob Geissler and Jonathan Doyle, are expected to be sentenced in federal court in Dallas on October 13 and 15, 2020, respectively. As a result of a previous court order, the statements currently are running on television five times per week, and previously ran as full-page ads in about fifty newspapers across the country. Summons and Complaint -- When the United States Attorney decides a federal civil law has been violated, a civil litigator, known as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, files a Summons and Complaint in U.S. District Court and has a copy of the documents served on the alleged offender, who is called the defendant. The hearings will be held in Dallas before U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Docket Number: 0:17-CR-60056 (S.D. If you believe you are a victim in this matter and would like to speak with someone regarding the case, please call Special Agent Chad Medaris, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, at 214-887-4174. The named defendants include direct mailers, printers, a cager, and a data manager who created and maintained lead lists. Okla.). Indiana Resident Charged with Sending Fraudulent Collection Letters to Mail FraudUnited States v. Sherry Gore Docket Number: 1:16-CR-20912 (S.D. On March 23, Richard Linick was sentenced to 3 years in prison for fraudulently selling $1.65 million in vending machine businesses to more than 140 victims. District Court Enters Permanent Injunction Against Utah Pharmacy and Individuals to Prevent Distribution of Adulterated and Misbranded Drugs and Unapproved New DrugsUnited States v. Isomeric Pharmacy Solutions, LLC, et al. 5:21-cr-00156 (W.D. Wasmund, who cooperated with the government in its investigation of Quality Egg and its principals, Jack and Peter DeCoster, pleaded guilty in September 2012 to one count of conspiracy. The defendants then caused the vehicles odometers and titles to reflect false, low mileages, and they sold the vehicles for inflated prices to unwitting consumers. On August 31, 2020, four individuals were charged in connection with an alleged clinical trial fraud scheme involving Miami company Unlimited Medical Research. On May 10, 2017, pharmacist Titilayo Akinyoyenu was sentenced to 36 months of probation and ordered to pay a $250,000 criminal fine for his role in a conspiracy to ship pharmaceuticals that were misbranded because they lacked valid prescriptions. The former president says the claim is a lie. The governments complaint alleged that PharMediums drugs were adulterated because they were prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have been contaminated with filth or rendered injurious to health and because PharMedium failed to comply with current good manufacturing practices. The other two defendants are presently in the Republic of Colombia, and their time to answer the Complaint for Permanent Injunction had not yet expired. ), Docket Numbers: 2:16-CR-0124 (E.D. The complaint also alleged that the defendants illegally distributed unapproved new drugs based on labeling claims that certain products treated diseases such as HIV and Alzheimers. Sentencing for Geissler, Doyle, Patel, and S.K. Cal.). The complaint also alleged that defendants Goldring, Oyrekh and Krutovsky are Neptunes corporate officers with the authority and responsibility for preventing and correcting violations of federal law at the company. The complaint alleged that the defendants were not complying with the FDAs current good manufacturing practice regulations and were, accordingly, misbranding the dietary supplements they manufacture and sell. Three men extradited from Peru for overseeing call centers that threatened and defrauded Spanish-speaking consumers in the United States The complaint alleged that ABH and Islam manufactured and distributed dietary supplements under conditions that failed to comply with current good manufacturing practice regulations. Some victims were threatened with negative marks on their credit reports, imprisonment, or deportation. On Feb. 21, 2018, the district court issued a temporary restraining order pursuant to 18 U.S.C. In addition to pleading guilty to international money laundering and conspiracy charges linked to RX Limited, Leroux also pleaded guilty to trafficking methamphetamine, unlicensed exportation of goods and technology from the United States to a third country, computer hacking, and accessory-after-the-fact charges. The jury in E. Jean Carroll's federal civil case got its first look Tuesday at the former advice Docket Number: 1:19-CV-02184 (D.D.C.). Two Pakistani National Sentenced for Conspiring to Illegally Ship Pharmaceuticals into the United StatesUnited States v. Ul HaqPress ReleaseDocket Numbers: 1:12-MJ-00810 (D.D.C.). On August 31, 2020, four individuals were charged in connection with a clinical trial fraud scheme in which the conspirators, working through a company called Unlimited Medical Research, allegedly falsified and fabricated the participation of subjects in a pediatric drug study. On August 3, 2020, U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams granted the governments motion for default judgment against two Americans currently located in Colombia who lead the non-religious Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, in an FDCA civil enforcement action. On August 12, 2020, Andrea Burrow pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud based on her participation in a scheme that cheated victims, many of whom were elderly and vulnerable, out of more than $10 million. See February 17, 2017 update on Felecia Lindo. N.C.). Acino manufactures hydrocortisone acetate 25 mg suppositories, which it labels and sells as prescription drugs. Indivior Inc. Indicted for Fraudulently Marketing Prescription OpioidUnited States v. Indivior Inc. Press Release In pleading guilty, Raventos admitted that she conspired with others to fabricate the participation of subjects in the clinical trial and falsify clinical trial data. For example in the summer of 2014, inspectors found that 19 lots of Downings drugs had tested positive for various microorganisms, including Staphylococcus haemolyticus, which can cause septicemia, peritonitis, and urinary tract infections, and Nocardia nova, which can cause pneumonia, sinusitis, and skin infections. This scheme defrauded more than 1 million Americans out of more than $180 million. In filings unsealed on February 9, 2021, Indian drug manufacturer Fresenius Kabi Oncology Limited (FKOL) agreed to plead guilty to concealing and destroying records prior to a 2013 FDA plant inspection in Kalyani, India. Civil The complaint alleges that the defendants are in violation of current good manufacturing practice and quality-system requirements, and are marketing medical devices without either clearance or approval. Robinson pleaded guilty in February 2017 to one count of conspiracy to commit odometer tampering and securities fraud. Subject to Rules 23(e), 23.1(c), 23.2, and 66 and any applicable federal statute, the plaintiff may dismiss an action Trial for the remaining defendants is scheduled to begin June 13, 2017. According to a signed plea agreement, from approximately September 2019 to November 2019, Reyes intentionally and unlawfully imported counterfeit THC vaping materials from China. Docket Number: 1:07-CR-20871 (S.D.Fla.). Fla.). Long used the proceeds of his fraud scheme to purchase a ranch in Texas, three airplanes, cars, buses, ATVs, and a fire truck, as well as to pay other personal expenses. The order permanently enjoins the defendants from processing and distributing food that is adulterated under the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Filing Electronically How to File a Case In both cases, Dallals co-conspirators then sold the drugs to wholesalers and pharmacies throughout the United States with false pedigree documents that did not disclose the true sources of the drugs. The indictment alleges that Mario Castro, Jose Salud Castro, Salvador Castro, Miguel Castro, and Jose Luis Mendez all worked at printing and mailing businesses that sent the fraudulent mailings and shared in the resulting profits. Cal. Docket Number: 2:18-CR-0046 (E.D.N.Y.). Docket Number: 1:18-CV-5104 (N.D. Ill.). On December 20, 2018, Zhang Xiao Dong (aka Mark Zhang), a Chinese citizen, was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment in connection with a fraud and smuggling scheme to sell mislabeled dietary supplements containing hidden synthetic stimulants. United States v. Pharmaceutical Innovations Inc. and Charles Buchalter; Pharmaceutical Innovations, Inc. v. U.S. Food & Drug Admin; Docket Number: 2:14-CV-6139 (D.N.J. On September 22, 2020, the court sentenced Dallas-based USPLabs to two years of probation and $4.7 million in criminal forfeiture for its role in fraudulently marketing a popular dietary supplement allegedly linked to liver damage. Court Enters Permanent Injunction Against New York Creamery Linked to Deadly Listeria OutbreakUnited States v. Vulto Creamery et al.Press Release The department filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Nov. 21 alleging that Neptunes seafood products are produced under conditions that are inadequate to ensure the safety of its products. On May 5, 2020, the district court entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Gold Star Smoked Fish Corp., a New York company, and its CEO and co-owner, Rober Pinkow. Peruvian Man Sentenced to 90 Months Imprisonment for Overseeing Call Centers that Threatened and Defrauded American Consumers, United States v. Francesco Guerra Cal.). On March 27, 2018, the district court permanently enjoined dietary supplement distributor MyNicNaxs LLC, and two principals of the company, Chevonne Torres and Michael Banner, from selling and distributing unapproved and misbranded new drugs. In conjunction with the filing of the complaint, the defendants agreed to settle the litigation and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction that prohibits them from committing violations of the FDCA. In addition, S.K. On May 4, 2017, the district court entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Syfrett Feed Company, Inc.; the companys owner and president, Charles B. Syfrett I; the companys vice president, Melissa S. Montes De Oca; and its operations manager, Charles B. Syfrett II. In pleading guilty, Long admitted that he used personal and financial information of more than 375,000 victims to steal millions of dollars from checking accounts.