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Date: 03-17-2023
Case Style:
United States of America v. Merrill Hanny, Roger Burke and Robert Sollis
Case Number:
Judge: None
Court: United States District Court for the District of Idaho (Ada County)
Plaintiff's Attorney: United States Attorney’s Office in Boise
Defendant's Attorney:
Description: Boise, Idaho civil litigation lawyers represented Defendants charged with violating the False Claims Act.
Merrill Hanny, Roger Burke, and Robert Sollis knowingly and impermissibly included millions of pounds of potatoes on Burke’s and Sollis’ CFAP applications that were actually owned by Hanny. In this way, Burke and Hanny obtained CFAP funds that they were not eligible to receive, and Hanny was able to circumvent the $250,000 cap on CFAP funds they he could receive.
“The vast majority of Idahoans who applied for CFAP funds played by the rules,” said U.S. Attorney Hurwit. “Unfortunately, some individuals have sought to line their pockets by defrauding taxpayer-funded pandemic relief programs like USDA’s CFAP program. We will continue to use all tools at our disposal to pursue and hold such individuals accountable.”
The settlement is a result of a coordinated effort between the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho.
Outcome: Defendants agreed topay $500,000 to settled the allegations that they violated the False Claims Act.
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: