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Four chiropractors and another capper were charged on October 30^th 2018 by the Orange County District Attorney’s office, comprising Phase II of a case involving multi-millions of dollars in workers’ compensation fraud centering on illegal referrals of patients.  Phase I, which involved ten applicants’ attorneys and six cappers, was charged on June 5^th 2017. 

Fermin Iglesias, owner of Medex, was charged Tuesday with five counts consisting of violations of Penal Code Sections 550 (a)(6) and 550 (b) (3), which are for knowingly, unlawfully and causing to be made false and fraudulent claims to workers’ compensation insurance carriers plus concealing and failing to disclose material facts.  He worked with fellow capper Carlos Arguello to refer recruited patients to applicants’ attorneys, doctors, and chiropractors in return for fees. Medex was paid over $8.8 million by Sam Solakyan, owner of Global Holdings, Empire Radiology, Vital Imaging, and other shell companies. 

Solakyan was indicted on September 25^th 2018 by the United States District Court of the Southern District of California.  He was released from custody by the Federal Bureau of Prisons on Tuesday, October 9^th2018, on a 1.5 million dollar bond.

The chiropractors charged Tuesday are:

• Bahar Danesh Gharib, DC, age 42 of Woodland Hills
• Bryan Aun, DC, age 45 of Brea
• Afsoun Naderi, DC, age 50, of Newport Coast
• John Larson, DC, age 45 of Rancho Cucamonga.

Phase I and Phase II of this case stem from the same investigation.  Three defendants charged in Phase I have pleaded guilty to involvement in this unlawful referral scheme.  It began in 2014, when the Orange County District Attorney’s office received information from a major insurance carrier.  This initiated an investigation in collaboration with the California Department of Insurance.  It ultimately involved more than 20 insurance carriers and self-insured entities conducting business in California.

Lonce Lamonte, journalist, lonce@adjustercom.com