Rene Montes was the ring leader and the mastermind in an elaborate shell game he played with his company named both WC Surgery Centers and WCSC & Associates and Chartis and Matrix between roughly 2002 and 2006.  It is also believed Montes did business with adjusters at Sedgwick CMS, but Sedgwick chose not to prosecute.

He would lure workers’ compensation claims adjusters into his scheme by asking them to pay him directly for medical bills from hospitals and liens from self-procured medical treatments so he could negotiate the bills and liens on behalf of Chartis, Matrix, or Sedgwick.  But, in many cases, he never paid the providers at all, and in many cases, as well, he got Hector Porrata, a claims manager at Matrix Absence Management back in 2003 and 2004, to double pay surgery bills and liens.  One payment would be directly made to WC Surgery Centers, and the other would be made directly to the real provider.

Rene Montes would then give kick-backs to the adjusters.  But, testimony both inside and outside the courtroom suggests that Montes took the lion’s share of the money, giving only small gratuities to the adjusters.  To one adjuster who did business with him, according to outside the courtroom testimony, he paid nothing at all.

The Deputy District Attorney, Thomas Schultz, who has been prosecuting this case for nearly a year, believes that Rene Montes will receive a 12 year State Prison term.

“I don’t think anything less than 12 years would be justified or reasonable.  And Judge Fasel appears to be a very reasonable judge,” Schultz stated by phone last Friday.

Judge Frank Fasel agreed in early June to allow a maximum sentence for Rene Montes of 12 years.  Thomas Schultz’s offer was for 14 years.   However, Frank Fasel put the cap on the sentence for a maximum of 12 years, and ordered a Probation Department Report to come forth to assist him with final sentencing.  

“My offer for Hector Porrata was 9 years, and the judge gave him 8 years,” Schultz explained. “My offer for Rene Montes was 14 years because he received all the money.  That is my understanding.  What I was able to prove is that Mr. Montes was the recipient of the lion’s share of the money.  I realize that small payments were made to others, but he kept the money and he was the ring leader.  He was involved in all of the transactions.”

According to Schultz, there are mitigating and aggravating factors according to the statutes that justify a particular sentence.   Rene Montes being the mastermind in the scam was an aggravating factor.  Another aggravating factor was that he presumed a position of leadership in the crime.  The crime involved was of sophistication and complexity, thus there was planning. This is an aggravating factor.  Also the loss was significant.   Another aggravating factor.   In this case Montes was involved in 1.5 million in losses and Porrata was only involved in 1.1 or 1.2 million.  There were also violations of positions of trust.  Montes used the positions of trust that Hector Porrata, Cara Cruz-Thompson and George Martinez held as adjusters, according to this case.  This is yet another aggravating factor.

“There are also statutory factors in mitigation.  And I don’t see any (for Montes) other than his minimal criminal past.  So the 14 years that we offered was reasonable,” Schultz affirmed.

So, I asked Schultz, based on the dearth of mitigating factors, and the preponderance of aggravating factors in Rene Montes’ case, if he believes the judge will impose the maximum 12-year-sentence he agreed upon.

 “We’re going to argue it.  I am always surprised, but more often than not, I am not.  I fully expect that he (Judge Frank Fasel) will issue a reasoned, fair sentence, which I think will be 12 years.”

Readers may write to writer Lonce LaMon at lonce@adjustercom.com