Investigative Reports

An Amtrak trackman/watchman based in Chicago, Illinois, was terminated from employment on November 3, 2020, following his administrative hearing. Our investigation found that the former employee failed to report an arrest and conviction for a DUI while employed with the company. We also found that the former employee violated company policy by signing out a company vehicle when his driver’s license was suspended, and that he bid for a position which required a valid driver’s license for which he submitted fraudulent records. Further, the former employee was dishonest with our agents during his interview.

This investigation addressed an allegation that an employee violated federal ethics laws by obtaining outside employment with a TVA contractor while still employed with TVA. The investigation revealed that the employee obtained outside employment only after TVA eliminated his position and he began a 90-severance period during which TVA told him he could pursue employment with any outside company. Furthermore, there was no evidence the employee attempted to influence any official action at TVA during this period. The employee did not comply with several legal and regulatory requirements such as filing a statement notifying the Designated Agency Ethics Official (DAEO) of his negotiation for outside employment. Additionally, the employee did not file a recusal statement, obtain a written waiver for outside employment or qualify for a regulatory exemption from these requirements. The evidence shows the employee worked solely with TVA Human Resources (HR) during the termination process and did not receive advice from the DAEO regarding these requirements.The OIG recommends that TVA HR consult with TVA’s DAEO to ensure TVA employees receive detailed guidance regarding outside employment and post-employment issues.

We investigated allegations that Helen Hernandez, former Secretary of the Credit and Finance Office (CFO), Oglala Sioux Tribe, Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, SD, issued payroll deduction loans to herself. It was also alleged that Hernandez used other individuals’ personal information to acquire loans in their names and then used those funds for her benefit.Our investigation showed Hernandez, then the Secretary of the CFO, issued 44 checks between February 2014 and June 2015, worth approximately $42,100 in total. Hernandez admitted to fraudulently issuing the checks and entering false loan recipient names in CFO records to conceal her activities. She was one of only two employees at the CFO and was responsible for receiving applications, verifying qualifications, and otherwise processing loans. Because of the lack of a clear separation of duties, she could essentially issue loans to whomever she chose, with no outside verification.The U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of South Dakota, indicted Hernandez, who pled guilty to 18 U.S.C. § 1163, “Embezzlement and theft from Indian tribal organizations,” and agreed to pay restitution of $42,100 to the Oglala Sioux Tribe.

An Amtrak ticket agent based in North Dakota was terminated from employment on October 28, 2020, following her administrative hearing. Our investigation found that the former employee left her post on seven separate occasions for extended periods of time, without approval or authorization, to attend personal events and activities on company time, and without clocking out as company policy requires.

We investigated an allegation that U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Director James Reilly retaliated against a USGS employee after the employee filed a complaint with our office about Reilly’s conduct. We substantiated the allegation. We issued a report on our investigation to the Secretary of the Interior for any action deemed appropriate.

Michael Hollingsworth, a resident of New York, was sentenced on October 26, 2020, in U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, to 36 months of probation and forfeiture of $200 for falsifying an Amtrak pre-employment drug test. Hollingsworth received cash from an Amtrak job applicant to submit a fraudulent drug test sample so the applicant would pass Amtrak’s drug screening requirement. At the time, Hollingsworth was the owner and operator of DDW Drug Testing Services, a subcontractor that conducts pre-employment drug-test collections for Amtrak’s prime contractor. His company served as the primary drug test sample collector for Amtrak in the New York City area since 2016. He previously pleaded guilty for his role in the scheme on November 19, 2019.In addition to our investigation into Hollingsworth’s activities, we issued a management information report to the company presenting our observations regarding Amtrak’s prime contractor. Our report identified a disturbing lack of due diligence by the contractor regarding their subcontractors involved in the pre-employment drug testing process. We also found that the prime contractor was less than candid with Amtrak officials and us about prior problems with Hollingsworth. The company concurred with our observations and took corrective action to address them.

We investigated allegations that a then senior political employee of the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) did not comply with his Federal ethics pledge under Executive Order No. 13770 when he communicated with a former employer during the required 2-year recusal period following the political employee’s Federal appointment in the fall of 2017.We identified a number of interactions between the senior political employee and representatives of the former employer—namely, several email exchanges, three phone calls, one in-person meeting, and one presentation at an event hosted by the former employer. While some of these interactions with the former employer may have been relatively minor in nature, we found that the senior political employee nonetheless did not comply with the ethics pledge because those interactions occurred during the 2-year recusal period. In contrast, we found that, under the circumstances, a presentation made by the senior political employee at an event hosted by the former employer was permissible under the ethics pledge because the senior employee attended in his official capacity.In making these findings, we note that the senior political employee told us he initially did not understand that his unpaid, volunteer position with an entity related to an organization (the former employer described above) was itself considered former employment under the ethics pledge. In fact, the organization itself as well as the related entity are considered a “former employer” under the pledge. After it was alleged that the senior political employee violated ethics rules in his interactions with the former employer, the Departmental Ethics Office (DEO) provided the senior political employee with written guidance about communications with former employers and specifically found that the organization in question qualified as a former employer under the ethics pledge. In its written guidance, the DEO acknowledged that the senior political employee had not received specific written or verbal guidance from the DEO identifying the organization as a “former employer” for purposes of the ethics pledge. We found no further communications between the senior political employee and representatives of the organization after the senior political employee received this guidance.We provided our report to the Chief of Staff for the Office of the Secretary for any action deemed appropriate.

The OIG investigated a complaint by a National Park Service (NPS) employee who, in 2018, alleged that another NPS employee sexually assaulted them while they were both stationed at the Grand Canyon National Park (GRCA) in 2003.We found insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegation.

An Amtrak coach cleaner in Chicago, Illinois, was terminated from employment on October 14, 2020, following her administrative hearing. The former employee participated in a medical fraud scheme in violation of company policies. Our investigation found that the former employee provided a chiropractor based in Dolton, Illinois, with her medical and personally identifiable information and that of her dependents in exchange for cash kickbacks. The chiropractor used the information to fraudulently bill Amtrak’s health insurance plan for services that were not provided.

The OIG investigated allegations that QEP Energy Company (QEP) failed to properly value minerals produced from Tribal and Indian Allottee properties for 2013 and 2014.We found that QEP underpaid mineral royalties owed to Indian mineral owners in North Dakota, Oklahoma, and New Mexico by $118,716. Subsequently, the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) discovered QEP also undervalued natural gas liquids associated with the leases included in our investigation. This separate violation directly affected QEP’s overall royalty obligation. As a result, ONRR needed to complete an audit to determine any further extent of QEP’s royalty obligations. This matter was referred to ONRR for administrative resolution.

Ryan Taylor Minter, of Calumet City, Illinois, was sentenced in United States District Court, Central District of Illinois, on October 6, 2020, to 18 months in prison, one-year probation and was ordered to pay restitution of $15,938 for wire fraud charges. Our investigation found that Minter participated in a scheme to defraud Amtrak and others by using stolen credit card information from at least 216 different credit or debit cards to purchase Amtrak tickets online valued at over $29,000. Minter used Amtrak’s mobile application and website to purchase the tickets and then advertised them at a discounted price on social media sites frequented by college students.

Irena Shut, a medical marketer based in Los Angeles, California, was sentenced in United States District Court, Central District of California, on October 5, 2020, to two years’ probation for conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Our investigation found that Shut was paid commissions for facilitating the referral of prescriptions for medically unnecessary compounded drugs and other items reimbursed by health care benefit programs. As a result of the scheme, Amtrak’s insurance providers were fraudulently charged approximately $22,000. Criminal judicial proceedings for other defendants in this case are pending.