Federal authorities have seized almost $6.8 million from bank accounts of an area physician. They said Dr. Raymond Sean Brown has submitted false Medicare claims.
A lawuit filed in civil court at the Chattanooga Federal Courthouse says Dr. Brown "has engaged in criminal violations of Title 18 of the United States Code, specifically, Brown, and others, have violated the law by committing mail, wire and health care fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341, 1343, 1347, and 1956, by submitting false claims to the Medicare health insurance program by seeking reimbursement from these health care benefit programs for the provision of an unapproved, and therefore, not covered, medical drug provided to the beneficiary. In addition, Brown used the proceeds of the aforementioned specified unlawful activities to promote the carrying out of the specified unlawful activities in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1956(a)(1)(A)(i)."
It says the money taken from the bank accounts is subject to forfeiture.
The suit says, "The Government’s investigation has determined that the defendant properties were derived from proceeds traceable to violations of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341, 1343, 1347, and 1956. The defendant properties were seized on Dec. 18, 2012 by the Food and Drug Administration pursuant to seizure warrants."
The seizures included:
a) $186,091.84 U.S. currency seized from Tennessee Valley Federal Credit Union Account #xx8503 in the name of Sean Brown.
b) $6,579,517.08 U.S. currency seized from Athens Federal Community Bank account number xxxxx1738, in the name of R. Sean Brown.
It says the money "is derived from proceeds traceable to violations of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1341 (Mail Fraud), 1343 (Wire Fraud), 1347 (Health Care Fraud), and 1956 (Money Laundering)."
Prosecutor Anne-Marie Svolto of Knoxville is handling the case for the government.