Here We Go Again ...

Our old friend (and convicted felon) Howard Awand has been subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury to answer questions about the "Medical Mafia." Could this be the beginning of Round 2?

(I-Team; Thanks Tipster!)

Awand Gets Four Years ... For Tax Evasion?

While some may have seen Howard Awand's plea deal as a swing-and-a-miss for U.S. attorneys, the tax man was there all along batting cleanup. (Sorry, it's baseball season)

Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Kent Dawson sentenced Awand to four years in prison, and his wife Linda to three years, for willful failure to pay roughly $2.5 million in back taxes.

From the LV Sun:

Howard Awand, 65, of Vevay, Ind., and Linda Awand, 61, of Stowe, Vt., owned Nevada Medical Consultants. The company was taxed as a partnership and the couple was responsible for reporting their share of Nevada Medical's income on their joint personal tax returns.

They reported taxable income of $8.1 million from 2001 through 2004 and owed $2.6 million in taxes. But they paid only $30,000 and only after they discovered they were under investigation by the IRS.

Howard Awand also testified at trial that he falsely told people that he served in Vietnam and in the CIA in order to drum up business for the medical consulting company.

Ah, the ole' fake Vietnam vet story to drum up business for the medical consulting business you're not paying taxes on. Very sneaky, Mr. Awand. We're sure your new cellmate will love to hear all of your stories.

The tax case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Myhre and Kathryn Newman. Awand still faces sentencing for his role in the Medical Mafia debacle on June 25.

(LV Sun)

Awand Cops A Plea

The third member of the Medical Mafia has taken a deal. Howard Awand was allegedly the coordinator of the local doctors and lawyers who rigged medical malpractice lawsuits and split the profits.

Awand, like Kabins, pled (that's right, we're going with pled) guilty to misprision of a felony, meaning he knew about federal crimes being committed but did not immediately report them.

Awand is scheduled to be sentenced on June 25. He faces up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine, as well as restitution and a period of supervised release. As part of the agreement, the government agreed not to make any sentencing recommendation.

Prosecutors would not say whether this plea ends their investigation into the Medical Mafia shenanigans. We doubt it. A tipster recently sent us a federal court filing (2:10-cv-00282) which named doctors Raimundo Leon, Michael Prater and Mark Kabins, along with the Gazda & Tadayon law firm and he-who-doesn't-blink as defendants. The cause of action sounds strangely familiar:

Racketeering. Plaintiff says three attorneys and their law firms, and two doctors and their practices participated in a scheme by staging fraudulent medical care and treatments, then creating fraudulent billings and insurance claims. The attorneys and physicians sought payment for corresponding injuries to those fraudulent treatments.

Could this be the beginning of Round 2?

(LV Now; LV Sun; Thanks Tipster!)