Dallas Attorney and Four Family Members Indicted in $22 Million Fraud Conspiracy

DALLAS — A federal grand jury in Dallas returned an indictment late yesterday charging Dallas attorney Tshombe Anderson and four family members with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud stemming from a scheme they ran from July 2011 to September 2015 to fraudulently obtain more than $22 million from the Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Worker’s Compensation Program (OWCP), announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Tshombe Anderson, 52, and his sister Lydia Bankhead, 61, have been in custody since their arrest in late August 2015, on a related federal criminal complaint.

In addition to Tshombe Anderson, this indictment charges his wife Brenda Anderson, 45, his sister-in-law Janet Anderson, 41, and his niece Lydia Taylor, 28, with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud.  It is expected that all five defendants will make their initial appearance in federal court in Dallas in the coming weeks.

Tshombe Anderson worked as an attorney with a law office located in Dallas.  He formed a Durable Medical Equipment (DME) company in 2010 called Best First Administration DME of Austin, LLC (BFA), which listed him as one of the company’s managers.  Then, in 2013, he formed two more DME companies, Union Medical Supplies & Equipment, LLC (UMSE) and Sky Care Medical Supplies & Equipment, LLC (SMSE).

Brenda Anderson managed BFA, and in 2010, she enrolled BFA as a provider with OWCP through Affiliated Computer Services.  In February 2010, Brenda Anderson, through BFA, acted as the in-house DME provider for Union Treatment Center (Union).  Both Tshombe and Brenda Anderson were fired from Union in May 2011.

Bankhead was a UMSE manager and enrolled the company as a provider with OWCP through Affiliated Computer Services.

Janet Anderson was a manager of SMSE and enrolled the company as a provider with OWCP through Affiliated Computer Services.

Lydia Taylor, at Tshombe Anderson’s suggestion, sought out and obtained a position as a volunteer intern in OWCP’s Dallas office.  After obtaining this position and gaining access to OWCP’s system, Taylor would look up claim numbers and provide information to her co-conspirators.

The indictment alleges that the purpose of the conspiracy was for the five defendants, through BFA, UMSE, and SMSE, to unlawfully enrich themselves by submitting, and causing the submission of, payment of fraudulent claims to OWCP that (a) falsely represented that the DME was requested; (b) falsely represented that the DME was necessary; and (c) falsely represented that the DME had to be provided.  They obtained more than $22 million through this scheme.

From July 2011 through September 21, 2015, more than 250 patient claim numbers have been used by at least one of the companies formed and managed by the defendants to bill OWCP.  During this time, BFA, UMSE, and SMSE collectively billed OWCP more than 50,000 times and were paid more than $22 million because of the defendants falsely representing that the DME billed for was requested, necessary and provided.    

A federal indictment is an accusation by a grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  If convicted, however, the maximum statutory penalty for conspiracy to commit mail fraud is 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation that, upon conviction, would require the defendants to forfeit a money judgment in the amount of $32 million, representing the approximate amount of proceeds derived from the scheme to defraud, for which the defendants are jointly and severally responsible.  In addition, the following property that was seized by federal agents on August 26, 2015, will be forfeited:  $375,000 in cash seized from Tshombe and Brenda Anderson’s residence; $295,860 in cash seized from Lydia Bankhead’s residence; three vehicles including a 2014 Jeep, a 2014 Lexus, and a 2015 Mercedes; and a total of $8,383,075.00 seized from 25 bank accounts.

The DOL Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General are investigating.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Wiley, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Danial Gividen and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lea Carlisle are in charge of the prosecution.

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