Two lawyers and two surgeons have been indicted by a federal grand jury on mail- and wire-fraud charges for allegedly participating in a five-year, $31 million insurance scam in which “extremely poor” and often homeless or drug-addicted people in New York City were recruited to stage trip-and-fall accidents, the U.S. Justice Department said Wednesday.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and the FBI’s New York office jointly announced the unsealed indictment following the arrests of attorney Marc Elefant and Drs. Andrew Dowd and Sady Ribeiro. The fourth defendant, attorney George Constantine, is expected to surrender on Thursday, U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in the announcement.
Elefant’s attorney, Michael Bachner of Bachner & Associates, said Elefant denies the charges and “acted in good faith and in reliance on the information provided to him.”
Attorneys for Constantine and Ribeiro did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Dowd’s attorney, Aaron Mysliwiec of Edel & Mysliwiec, declined to comment.
Elefant’s attorney, Michael Bachner of Bachner & Associates, said Elefant denies the charges and “acted in good faith and in reliance on the information provided to him.”
Attorneys for Constantine and Ribeiro did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Dowd’s attorney, Aaron Mysliwiec of Edel & Mysliwiec, declined to comment.