Description: Alexandria, Virginia criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with corruptly obstructing the IRS by underreporting his income and filing false tax returns in connection with his medical practice.

Dr. Jasser Thiara owned and operated an obstetrics medical practice, doing business as Mid-Atlantic Ob-Gyn, and another doctor’s office specializing in pain management called Fairfax Pain Clinic. To reduce his taxable income for the 2017 to 2020 tax years, Thiara filed false returns for Mid-Atlantic that claimed bogus business deductions, which fraudulently decreased the company’s business income. Thiara then filed false individual income tax returns, which did not fully report the income that he had received from MidAtlantic. Thiara also failed to report hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in gross receipts generated by Fairfax Pain Clinic.

In addition to the Mid-Atlantic and Fairfax Pain Clinic schemes, from 2014 through approximately 2016, Thiara received payments for prescriptions referred to certain Virginia pharmacies owned by Mohamed Abdalla, even though some of Mid-Atlantic’s contracts with insurers expressly prohibited such arrangements. In some instances, Abdalla billed insurance companies for these prescriptions but did not send the medications to patients in order to increase profits. Some patients contacted Mid-Atlantic to complain that they had been provided with medicine that they had not requested or did not need. In other instances, patients complained to Mid-Atlantic that their insurance companies had been billed for prescriptions that they had not received, knew nothing about, and did not need. In total, Thiara received approximately $2.2 million from the “referral” scheme, and neither reported, nor paid taxes on this income.

Finally, for the 2017 to 2020 tax years, Thiara used a business called NTMT to receive payments for medical services billed out-of-network, principally from Aetna and United Healthcare, even though Thiara was an in-network provider for both insurers. Thiara then filed returns which falsely reported that NTMT had received minimal to no business income, when in fact it had received millions of dollars from insurance companies.

In total, Thiara did not pay the Internal Revenue Service $3,172,001 in taxes owed for the tax years 2015 to 2020. Thiara used these funds to purchase a lavish $3.5 million residence and a $340,000 Ferrari, and spent hundreds of thousands more on credit cards and luxury items.

Thiara is scheduled to be sentenced on March 15, 2024. He faces a maximum penalty of 3 years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Thiara has also agreed to pay $3,172,001 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service and another $2,214,830 to third-party victims.

Adballa was sentenced on March 19, 2021, to four years in prison for his role in the kickback scheme.

Jessica D. Aber, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; David Geist, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office Criminal Division; Kareem Carter, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigations Washington Field Office; Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS); Christopher Dillard, Special Agent in Charge for the Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service’s (DCIS) Mid-Atlantic Field Office; Derek Holt, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM); and George Scavdis, Special Agent in Charge, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations, Metro Washington Field Office, made the announcement after Senior U.S District Judge Claude M. Hilton accepted the plea.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jack Morgan and Zoe Bedell are prosecuting the case.

Corruptly Endeavoring to Obstruct the IRS, 26 USC 7212(a), which provides:

Whoever corruptly or by force or threats of force (including any
threatening letter or communication) endeavors to intimidate or impede any
officer or employee of the United States acting in an official capacity
under this title, or in any other way corruptly or by force or threat of
force (including any threatening letter or communication) obstructs or
impedes, or endeavors to obstruct or impede the due administration of this
title, shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined* not more than $5,000 or
imprisoned not more than three years or both.

*As to offenses committed after December 31, 1984, the Criminal Fine
Enforcement Act of 1984 (P.L. 98-596) enacted 18 U.S.C. § 3623 [FN1]
which increased the maximum permissible fines for both misdemeanors and
felonies. For the felony offenses set forth in section 7212, the maximum
permissible fine for offenses committed after December 31, 1984, is at
least $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for corporations.
Alternatively, if any person derives pecuniary gain from the offense, or
if the offense results in pecuniary loss to a person other than the
defendant, the defendant may be fined not more than the greater of twice
the gross gain or twice the gross loss.

Outcome: 2/15/2023 Notice of Correction: Unfortunately, document numbers 3 and 4 were an incorrectly saved PDF fillable form which we have replaced. To correctly save the PDF fillable form, click on the File menu select Print, and then select your PDF writer from the Printer Name List, then click on Print or OK depending on your program in re 3 Motion to appear Pro Hac Vice by Caroline D. Ciraolo 4 Motion to appear Pro Hac Vice by Abigail N. Burke. No further action is required at this time. (wgar, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 6 WAIVER OF INDICTMENT by Jasser Thiara (tarm, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 7 INFORMATION as to Jasser Thiara (1) count(s) 1. (tarm, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 8 Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge Claude M. Hilton: Plea Agreement Hearing as to Jasser Thiara held on 12/15/2023. US appeared through: Zoe Bedell. Deft appeared w/counsel Jay Nanavati. Dft PG to Count 1 of the Criminal Information filed. Plea entered by Jasser Thiara (1) and Accepted; Guilty Count 1. Deft referred to PO for PSIR and Sentencing set for 3/15/2024 at 10:00 AM in Alexandria Courtroom 800 before District Judge Claude M. Hilton. Deft placed on PR bond. (Court Reporter: J. Egal)(tarm) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 9 PLEA AGREEMENT as to Jasser Thiara (tarm, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 10 Statement of Facts as to Jasser Thiara (tarm, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 11 ORDER Setting Conditions of Release as to Jasser Thiara (1) PR Bond. Signed by District Judge Claude M. Hilton on 12/15/23. (tarm) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 12 Redacted Criminal Case Cover Sheet (tarm, ) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 13 ORDER granting 3 Motion for Pro hac vice Appointed Caroline DeLisle Ciraolo for Jasser Thiara as to Jasser Thiara (1). Signed by District Judge Claude M. Hilton on 12/15/2023. (swil) (Entered: 12/15/2023)
12/15/2023 14 ORDER granting 4 Motion for Pro hac vice Appointed Abigail Nicole Burke for Jasser Thiara as to Jasser Thiara (1). Signed by District Judge Claude M. Hilton on 12/15/2023. (swil) (Entered: 12/15/2023)

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