Financial Management Consultant Indicted for Allegedly Embezzling $1M

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – A federal grand jury in Providence today returned an eleven-count indictment charging John M. Hairabet, Jr., 43, a former business associate and office manager of New England Anesthesiologists, Inc., and president of Anesthesia Management Consultants, LLC, with allegedly embezzling more than $1 million dollars in bank account funds belonging to the medical firm and from employee 401(k) pension fund contributions.

The grand jury returned an indictment charging Hairabet with seven counts of wire fraud, two counts of money laundering, and one count each of pension theft and aggravated identity theft.

The indictment is announced by U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha, William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation; Ted A. Arruda,  Resident Agent in Charge of the Providence Office of the U.S. Secret Service; and Susan A. Hensley, Regional Director, U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration.

It is alleged in the indictment that between November 13, 2007, and January 31, 2013, Hairabet, in his capacity as an independent contractor bookkeeper and office manager of New England Anesthesiologists, and through his management consulting firm, Anesthesia Management Consultants, stole the identity of the owner of New England Anesthesiologists and used that stolen identity while signing bank documents and to convert more than $500,000 of New England Anesthesiologists funds for his own personal use.

It is also alleged in the indictment that between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2012, that Hairabet collected from employees of New England Anesthesiologists and converted for his own personal use several hundreds of thousands of dollars of 401(K) retirement fund employee contributions.

An indictment is merely an allegation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Wire fraud is punishable by up to 30 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $1,000,000; money laundering is punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the amount of criminally deprived property; pension theft is punishable by up to 5 years imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000; and aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory sentence of 2 years imprisonment to be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed by the court.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard W. Rose.

The matter was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration.

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