Investigative Reports

We found that a full-time NPS employee wrongfully obtained State unemployment insurance and Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation.

Mark Hernandez, a psychiatrist based in Miami, Florida; Peter Port, owner of Safe Haven Recovery Inc.; Brian Dublynn, Vice President of Safe Haven Recovery; and medical marketer Jennifer Sanford were sentenced in United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, on October 23, 2023, for conspiracy and other charges related to health care fraud. Hernandez was sentenced to 52 months in prison and 3 years’ probation; Port was sentenced to 108 months in prison and 3 years’ probation; Dublynn was sentenced to 42 months in prison and 3 years’ probation; and Sanford was sentenced to time served and 3 years’ probation.The defendants conspired to defraud private health companies by causing Safe Haven, a substance abuse treatment facility in Miami, along with several clinical laboratories, to submit false and fraudulent claims to health insurance plans for addiction treatment services that were not provided as billed and laboratory tests that were not medically necessary. As a result of the scheme, Amtrak’s insurance providers were billed approximately $86,130.

We found that a contractor wrongfully obtained over $10.7 million in Buy Indian Act set-aside contracts from BIA and BIE.

An Amtrak lead service attendant based in Miami, Florida, resigned from her position on October 20, 2023, as a result of our investigation. We found that the former employee violated company policies by engaging in outside employment while on a medical leave of absence.

We investigated allegations that a coal operator failed to pay mineral royalties on coal produced from Federal leases in Wyoming and Kentucky.

Edel Perez Acanda, a resident of Miami, Florida, was sentenced on October 16, 2023, in U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida, for Theft of Government Funds. Perez Acanda was sentenced to 2 months in prison, 3 years’ probation, and was ordered to pay $81,114 in restitution to Amtrak. Perez Acanda was employed by a company contracted by Amtrak to provide food services. Our investigation found that co-defendant Bryan DeCastro fraudulently altered the timecards of Perez Acanda and another individual to make it appear they worked more hours than they did, resulting in payment for hours they did not work. Perez Acanda then paid DeCastro kickbacks for falsely inflating the timecards.

We found that a company in Colorado failed to report production and pay royalties for oil and gas produced from Federal leases.

A Lead Service Attendant based at New York Penn Station violated company policies by engaging in outside employment at two temporary employment agencies and an assisted living facility in Delaware while on medical leave and receiving Railroad Retirement Board benefits. The employee resigned prior to her disciplinary hearing and is ineligible for rehire.

An Amtrak engineer based in Miami, Florida, signed a waiver of administrative hearing on October 9, 2023, following a year-long investigation into time and attendance abuses by a Miami-based yard crew. By signing the waiver, the employee waived his rights to an administrative hearing and accepted responsibility for the administrative charges against him and understood that future misconduct may result in termination.Our investigation found that yard crew employees violated company policies by routinely leaving work several hours before the end of their shifts while continuing to falsely claim regular or overtime pay for time they did not work. From June 2, 2022, to April 10, 2023, 10 additional employees were disciplined as a result of our investigation. Five of these employees signed a waiver to an administrative hearing, accepting responsibility of the administrative charges against them, and the other five either resigned while under investigation or were terminated from employment for their roles in the scheme.Finally, we provided the company with observations for their consideration that we learned during our investigation.

An Amtrak Coach Cleaner based in Miami, Florida, was terminated from employment on October 5, 2023, following her administrative hearing. Our investigation found that the employee violated company policies by engaging in outside employment while on a medical leave of absence.

Hanna Dinh, a California resident, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud on October 2, 2023, in U.S. District Court, Central District of California. Our investigation found that Dinh and others made false statements to lenders in connection with fraudulent applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans for her company (HD Financial Firm), including false representations regarding the number of employees on the company’s payroll and false certifications that the loans would be used for permissible business purposes. Dinh incorporated HD Financial Firm in June 2020, and was its sole officer and registered agent. Dinh and others submitted fraudulent EIDL and PPP loan applications seeking approximately $260,672.This investigation is part of a nationwide law enforcement action, that resulted in criminal charges against 18 defendants for their alleged participation in fraud schemes that exploited the COVID-19 pandemic. A co-defendant in this case, Dr. Anthony Hao Dinh, was also charged for allegedly orchestrating an approximately $230 million fraud on the Health Resources and Services Administration Uninsured Program. Dr. Dinh allegedly submitted fraudulent claims for treatment of patients, including Amtrak employees, that were insured but billed them to the uninsured progra