From State House to Prison: Ex-Florida Rep. Reginald Fullwood Jr.’s Decade-Long History of Fraud Culminates in 37-Month Sentence

Medicare Millions and Misplaced Trust: The Reginald Fullwood Story

FraudsWatch.com
Former Politician Reginald Fullwood Jr. Sentenced in $12.4 Million Medicare Fraud
Highlights
  • A detailed look at the rise and fall of a disgraced politician whose career was marked by a pattern of deceit, from campaign finance violations to a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme.

&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"from-campaign-finance-violations-to-medicare-fraud-the-case-of-reginald-fullwood-jr" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-0-104692 wp-block-heading">From Campaign Finance Violations to Medicare Fraud&colon; The Case of Reginald Fullwood&comma; Jr&period;<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>JACKSON&comma; Mississippi &&num;8211&semi; The saga of Reginald Fullwood Jr&period;&comma; a former Florida State Representative&comma; took another dramatic turn this week as the 59-year-old was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for his involvement in a complex conspiracy to defraud the United States through Medicare&period; This latest conviction marks the culmination of a decade-long pattern of fraudulent activity&comma; revealing a stark contrast between the public image Fullwood once projected and the criminal reality behind it&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s journey from a promising politician to a convicted felon began in Jacksonville&comma; Florida&comma; and ended in a Mississippi courtroom&period; His story is a cautionary tale about the abuse of power and the devastating consequences of greed&comma; highlighting vulnerabilities within both the political and healthcare systems&period; This article will delve into the details of Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s crimes&comma; examining the intricate schemes he orchestrated and the investigative efforts that ultimately brought him to justice&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"fullwood8217s-early-political-career-and-the-seeds-of-deception-20102016" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-1-104692 wp-block-heading">Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s Early Political Career and the Seeds of Deception &lpar;2010-2016&rpar;<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Reginald Fullwood Jr&period;&&num;8217&semi;s political career began in the late 2000s&comma; culminating in his election to the Florida House of Representatives&period; Representing Jacksonville&comma; he was seen by some as a rising star in Florida politics&period; However&comma; beneath the surface of his public persona&comma; a pattern of deceit was already taking root&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The first significant signs of trouble emerged in 2016 when Fullwood was indicted on 10 counts of wire fraud and four counts of failure to file federal income tax returns&period; The indictment&comma; unsealed by United States Attorney A&period; Lee Bentley&comma; III&comma; detailed a scheme in which Fullwood siphoned approximately &dollar;65&comma;000 in campaign contributions for personal use&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>According to court documents&comma; Fullwood established a company called Rhino Harbor&comma; LLC&comma; which served as a conduit for his illicit activities&period; He transferred funds from his &&num;8220&semi;Reggie Fullwood Campaign&&num;8221&semi; bank account to the Rhino Harbor account&comma; effectively laundering campaign money for personal expenditures&period; These included purchases at restaurants&comma; grocery stores&comma; retail outlets&comma; jewelry stores&comma; florists&comma; gas stations&comma; and liquor stores – expenses clearly unrelated to his campaign&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>To conceal his fraudulent activities&comma; Fullwood submitted falsified campaign expenditure reports to the State of Florida&comma; inflating legitimate expenses and inventing others out of thin air&period; This blatant disregard for campaign finance laws highlighted a willingness to manipulate the system for personal gain&comma; a trait that would become even more evident in his later crimes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-tax-evasion-charges" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-2-104692 wp-block-heading">The Tax Evasion Charges<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Compounding Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s legal troubles were the four counts of willful failure to file personal federal income tax returns for the years 2010 through 2013&period; These charges&comma; brought by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation &lpar;IRS-CI&rpar;&comma; underscored a broader pattern of <a class&equals;"wpil&lowbar;keyword&lowbar;link" href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;fraudswatch&period;com&sol;tag&sol;financial-fraud&sol;" title&equals;"financial" data-wpil-keyword-link&equals;"linked" data-wpil-monitor-id&equals;"1120">financial<&sol;a> impropriety&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Public officials&comma; whether elected or appointed&comma; hold positions of trust in the eyes of the public&period; That trust is broken when these officials commit crimes&comma;&&num;8221&semi; said Special Agent in Charge Kim Lappin of the IRS-Tampa Field Office at the time&period; &&num;8220&semi;No public official gets a free pass to ignore the tax laws&comma; and IRS-CI works to ensure that everyone pays their fair share&period;&&num;8221&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>These charges&comma; combined with the wire fraud allegations&comma; painted a picture of a politician who viewed both campaign funds and taxpayer obligations as optional&period; The maximum penalty for each wire fraud count was 20 years in prison&comma; and each tax evasion charge carried a potential one-year sentence&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-guilty-plea-and-downfall-in-florida" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-3-104692 wp-block-heading">The Guilty Plea and Downfall in Florida<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>In 2016&comma; facing overwhelming evidence&comma; Fullwood pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of failure to file federal income tax returns&period; This plea deal significantly reduced his potential prison time&comma; but it effectively ended his political career&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s sentencing hearing was scheduled for January 9&comma; 2017&period; However&comma; his legal troubles were far from over&period; This initial conviction would serve as a prelude to a much larger and more sophisticated scheme that would ultimately land him in federal prison for a more extended period&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-medicare-fraud-scheme-a-new-chapter-of-deceit-20172024" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-4-104692 wp-block-heading">The Medicare Fraud Scheme&colon; A New Chapter of Deceit &lpar;2017-2024&rpar;<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Following his conviction in Florida&comma; one might have expected Fullwood to retreat from public life and attempt to rehabilitate his image&period; Instead&comma; he embarked on a new and even more audacious criminal enterprise – a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Relocating to Madison&comma; Mississippi&comma; Fullwood shifted his focus from political campaigns to the healthcare industry&period; He established a durable medical equipment &lpar;DME&rpar; company called Jackson Medical Supply&period; This company&comma; however&comma; was not engaged in legitimate business practices&period; Instead&comma; it became the vehicle for a sophisticated fraud operation targeting Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-kickback-conspiracy" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-5-104692 wp-block-heading">The Kickback Conspiracy<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The core of Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s scheme involved paying kickbacks to a marketer in exchange for completed doctors&&num;8217&semi; orders&period; These orders were used to bill Medicare for orthotic braces that were either medically unnecessary or ineligible for reimbursement&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Durable medical equipment&comma; such as orthotic braces&comma; is often prescribed to patients to support injured or weakened joints&period; However&comma; the high reimbursement rates offered by Medicare for these devices have made them a frequent target for fraudulent schemes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s operation was not a solo endeavor&period; He collaborated with a marketer who specialized in obtaining doctors&&num;8217&semi; orders&comma; often through questionable means&period; This collaboration allowed Jackson Medical Supply to submit a massive volume of fraudulent claims to Medicare&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-nominee-owner-and-the-continuation-of-the-scheme" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-6-104692 wp-block-heading">The Nominee Owner and the Continuation of the Scheme<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>When Medicare initiated an investigation into Jackson Medical Supply&comma; Fullwood attempted to evade scrutiny by opening another DME entity under the name of a nominee owner&period; This tactic&comma; commonly used by individuals engaged in fraudulent activities&comma; aimed to create a layer of separation between Fullwood and the illegal operations&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Despite this attempt to conceal his involvement&comma; Fullwood continued to pay kickbacks to a marketer&comma; ensuring a steady flow of doctors&&num;8217&semi; orders to the new entity&period; This allowed him to continue billing Medicare for fraudulent claims&comma; demonstrating a brazen disregard for the law and a determination to profit from the scheme despite the ongoing investigation&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-scale-of-the-fraud" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-7-104692 wp-block-heading">The Scale of the Fraud<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The scale of Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s Medicare fraud was staggering&period; Over the course of the scheme&comma; Jackson Medical Supply and the subsequent entity billed Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans approximately &dollar;12&comma;441&comma;625&period;30&period; Of this amount&comma; they were reimbursed approximately &dollar;6&comma;448&comma;092&period;61 for DME that was either medically unnecessary or ineligible for reimbursement&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>These figures highlight the immense financial damage caused by Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s actions&period; Not only did he defraud taxpayers of millions of dollars&comma; but he also undermined the integrity of the Medicare program&comma; a vital resource for millions of elderly and disabled Americans&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-investigation-and-prosecution" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-8-104692 wp-block-heading">The Investigation and Prosecution<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The investigation into Fullwood&&num;8217&semi;s Medicare fraud scheme was a collaborative effort involving the U&period;S&period; Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General &lpar;HHS-OIG&rpar; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation &lpar;FBI&rpar;&period; These agencies meticulously gathered evidence&comma; tracing the flow of funds&comma; and uncovering the intricate network of individuals involved in the conspiracy&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>Acting U&period;S&period; Attorney Patrick A&period; Lemon of the Southern District of Mississippi&comma; Special Agent in Charge Robert A&period; Eikhoff of the FBI&comma; and Special Agent in Charge Tamala Miles of the HHS-OIG jointly announced the charges against Fullwood&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Sara Porter of the Gulf Coast Strike Force and Assistant United States Attorney Kimberly T&period; Purdie&period; Their efforts culminated in Fullwood pleading guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States on August 28&comma; 2024&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"the-sentencing-a-final-reckoning" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-9-104692 wp-block-heading">The Sentencing&colon; A Final Reckoning<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>On &lbrack;Insert Date&rsqb;&comma; Reginald Fullwood Jr&period;&comma; now 59 years old&comma; was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for his role in the Medicare fraud conspiracy&period; This sentence&comma; while significant&comma; was less than the maximum penalty he faced&comma; likely due to his guilty plea and cooperation with authorities&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>In addition to the prison term&comma; Fullwood was ordered to pay restitution to Medicare&comma; reimbursing the program for the millions of dollars he fraudulently obtained&period; This financial penalty serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of his actions and the long-lasting impact of his crimes&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<h2 id&equals;"conclusion-a-legacy-of-deceit" class&equals;"rb-heading-index-10-104692 wp-block-heading">Conclusion&colon; A Legacy of Deceit<&sol;h2>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The case of Reginald Fullwood Jr&period; is a chilling example of how ambition and greed can corrupt even those entrusted with public office&period; His journey from a Florida State Representative to a convicted felon involved in a multi-million dollar fraud scheme is a story of repeated betrayals of public trust&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>From his early days of siphoning campaign funds for personal use to his elaborate Medicare fraud operation&comma; Fullwood demonstrated a consistent pattern of deceit and a willingness to exploit loopholes in the system for personal gain&period; His actions not only harmed taxpayers and undermined the integrity of government programs but also eroded public trust in both the political and healthcare systems&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>The collaborative efforts of the FBI&comma; IRS&comma; and HHS-OIG were instrumental in bringing Fullwood to justice&period; Their investigation and prosecution serve as a warning to others who might be tempted to engage in similar fraudulent activities&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p>As Fullwood begins his 37-month prison sentence&comma; his story serves as a cautionary tale&comma; reminding us of the importance of ethical leadership&comma; the need for vigilance against fraud&comma; and the enduring principle that no one is above the law&period; The legacy of Reginald Fullwood Jr&period; will forever be marked by his criminal actions&comma; a stark contrast to the promise he once held as a rising political figure&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;justice&period;gov&sol;usao-sdms&sol;pr&sol;madison-man-sentenced-37-months-prison-conspiracy-defraud-united-states" data-type&equals;"link" data-id&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;www&period;justice&period;gov&sol;usao-sdms&sol;pr&sol;madison-man-sentenced-37-months-prison-conspiracy-defraud-united-states">Latest PressReleasess&period;&period;<&sol;a><&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p><strong>Call to Action&colon;<&sol;strong><&sol;p>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<ul class&equals;"wp-block-list">&NewLine;<li>Report suspected Medicare fraud to the HHS-OIG Hotline&colon; 1-800-HHS-TIPS &lpar;1-800-447-8477&rpar;<&sol;li>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<li>Learn more about campaign finance laws in your state&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<li>Stay informed about current events related to political corruption and healthcare fraud&period;<&sol;li>&NewLine;<&sol;ul>&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;&NewLine;<p><&sol;p>&NewLine;

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