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Former NFL Football fellas facing federal fraud charges


BearSchlong

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https://www.foxnews.com/sports/clinton-portis-retired-nfl-players-facing-federal-fraud-charges

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Clinton Portis, a former Pro Bowl running back, is among several former NFL players who are facing federal charges in an alleged scheme to defraud the league’s health care program for retired players.

Portis, Carlos Rogers, Robert McCune, John Eubanks, Tamarick Vanover, Ceandris Brown, James Butler, Frederick Bennett, Correll Buckhalter and Etric Pruitt are among the players charged by the Justice Department.

The government said it is also intending to charge Joe Horn and Reche Caldwell with conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

The scheme targeted the Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan for reimbursement, which was established in 2006 to provide tax-free reimbursement of medical expenses that were not covered by insurance and that were incurred by former players, their wives and any dependents.

More than $3.9 million in fraudulent medical claims were submitted to the plan and more than $3.4 million was paid out between June 2017 and June 2018, according to charging documents.

“The defendants are alleged to have developed and executed a fraudulent scheme to undermine a health care benefit plan established by the NFL – one established to help their former teammates and colleagues pay for legitimate medical expenses,” U.S. Attorney Robert M. Duncan Jr., for the Eastern District of Kentucky, said in a Justice Department news release. “The defendants allegedly submitted false claims to the plan and obtained money for expensive medical equipment that was never purchased or received, depriving that plan of valuable resources to help others meet their medical needs.”

The scheme involved submissions of fake claims that involved expensive medical equipment ranging between $40,000 and $50,000 for each claim, officials said. The medical equipment included “hyperbaric oxygen chambers, cryotherapy machines, ultrasound machines designed for use by a doctor’s office to conduct women’s health examinations and electromagnetic therapy devices designed for use on a horse.”

McCune, Eubans, Vanover, Buckhalter, Rogers and others allegedly recruited other players into the scheme by offering to submit the false claims for kickbacks and bribes, officials said. The bribes and kickbacks ranged from a few thousand dollars to up to $10,000 per claim.

The former players would allegedly fabricate supporting documentation for the claims. McCune and Buckhalter would allegedly call a telephone number provided by the plan and impersonated players in order to check the status of the fraudulent claims.

“This investigation serves as an illustration of the rampant and deliberate scams against health care plans occurring daily throughout the country,” FBI Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro said in the news release. “In this case, these fraudsters pocketed money from the Gene Upshaw National Football League Health Reimbursement Account Plan that was intended for former NFL players who are ill or infirm. Over 20 FBI field offices participated in this investigation, which demonstrates the level of commitment we have to rooting out this type of fraud.”

Portis, Brown, Butler and Bennett were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and health care fraud, one count of wire fraud and one count of health care fraud.

McCune was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and health care fraud, nine counts of wire fraud and nine counts of health care fraud.

Eubanks, Vanover and Rogers were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and health care fraud, two counts of wire fraud and two counts of health care fraud.

Buckhalter and Pruitt were charged with one county of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and health care fraud.

Edited by BearSchlong
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So they squandered their millions from the league?  Got off on the thrill?  Just thugs?  I don’t get why you’d need to area money after earning an nfl paycheck but we see it regularly.  
 

Of course I also don’t get why the plan would approve equestrian medical equipment but maybe that’s what the kickbacks were for.  

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11 hours ago, tx 3 putt said:

damn sad story for portis https://www.si.com/nfl/2017/06/28/clinton-portis-financial-ruin-where-are-they-now

 

got hooked in by some shitty advisers and they robbed him blind 

That is a horrible story. It's easy too say that he should have been smarter with his $$, and that is true, but I really feel the NFL teams and the NFL Players Union really let down these kids when they come out of school. A couple contracts, or one big first-round deal, should be enough to get these guys set for life, minus multiple homes, multiple Lambos, Jags, Benzs, etc.

It's no secret here in Pittsburgh that, and I have mentioned before that Billy Fralic was a friend of mine, but that his first contract was structured so that up until his death last year he was still receiving $150,000 per year, from a contract he signed 35 years ago. The NFL needs to do better for the guys who play the game.

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Apropos of little, all but one of the twelve players named played college ball in the south, and all of them played high school ball in the south (Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina).  Buckhalter played his college ball at Nebraska.

It's a southern conspiracy, I tell ya'.

 

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What are the ideas on how the nfl or union can help their players? At the end of the day, these are adults that can’t be prevented from spending their own money.  

i wouldn’t be happy if my employer came to me and said that they thought I overspent on my house and car, so they’re going to withhold (more) money from my paycheck and give it to me later.

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The NFL needs to help the mofos that played the game before the days of multi million dollar contracts. These fools today make enough money that even if they only play 3-4 years if they lived a normal man's life and during and worked a normal job after playing they could easily live comfortably for a long time. The other 99% can't retire for life on 3-5 years of work so why should these assholes be expected to? 

If they blow their money on hos then thems the breaks. 

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On 12/14/2019 at 9:20 AM, Nice Guy Eddie said:

What are the ideas on how the nfl or union can help their players? At the end of the day, these are adults that can’t be prevented from spending their own money.  

i wouldn’t be happy if my employer came to me and said that they thought I overspent on my house and car, so they’re going to withhold (more) money from my paycheck and give it to me later.

The union would obviously have to agree for it to happen, but they could do something like 50% of the first 500k a player gets each year is immediately invested in an index fund in the name of a trust for that player.  Once they retire they can withdraw from it in accordance with required minimum distribution rules so it lasts their whole life.  If they structure it correctly it can even be more tax efficient for the players.

When does the pension kick in, something like 3 or 4 years of service?  I imagine that's pretty good and all these allegedly broke guys are still getting enough from the pension to live a middle to upper middle class life.

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I guess the players union could agree to that but I never understand why fans worry themselves if some players end up broke. It’s a free country and I figure it’s the players problem not mine.

besides the union just can’t make rules without the current players agreeing.  I guess that few players would agree to a major pay decrease.  Most players earn closer to the league minimum but the 20m contracts. But each players vote counts the same.

edit: a google search shows that nfl players are eligible to be in their pension program after 3 years of service but it doesn’t start paying until they’re 55.  Average payout is 43k annually.  Minimum sounds like it’s 23k. 

Edited by Nice Guy Eddie
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