Indian American Surgeon Sentenced To 5 Years For $3.3 Million Bribe

An Indian-American surgeon will get 5 years’ jail for accepting bribes.

An Indian-American neurosurgeon has been sentenced to 60 months in federal jail for accepting roughly $3.3 million in bribes for performing spinal surgical procedures.

An American physician of Indian descent who accepted $3.3 million in illicit funds to conduct spinal surgical procedure at a fraudulent hospital was given a 5-year jail sentence, in line with the USA Division of Justice.

Dr. Lokesh S. Tantuwaya, a 55-year-old neurosurgeon from San Diego, California, operated on sufferers at a defunct hospital in Lengthy Seaside. The proprietor of the hospital was imprisoned for his half in an enormous staff’ compensation fraud.

In accordance with a launch by the USA Division of Justice, Dr Tantuwaya pleaded responsible on September 1 to 1 rely of conspiracy to commit trustworthy companies mail and wire fraud and to obtain unlawful funds for well being care referrals. He has been in federal custody since Might 2021 after he was discovered to have violated the phrases of his pretrial launch.

“From 2010 to 2013, Dr Tantuwaya accepted cash from Michael Drobot, who owned Pacific Hospital in Lengthy Seaside, in trade for Dr Tantuwaya performing spinal surgical procedures at that hospital. The bribe quantity different relying on the kind of spinal surgical procedure.”

Pacific Hospital proprietor Michael Drobot, who in 2018 was sentenced to 63 months in jail for his crimes on this scheme, conspired with docs, chiropractors, and entrepreneurs to pay kickbacks and bribes in return for the referral of 1000’s of sufferers to Pacific Hospital for spinal surgical procedures and different medical companies paid for primarily by way of the California staff’ compensation system.

Throughout its closing 5 years, the scheme resulted within the submission of greater than $500 million in medical payments for backbone surgical procedures involving kickbacks.