Salesman pleads guilty to fraud

Six charged in insurance scheme

A multiagency investigation ensnared him and five others on charges they took advantage of addicts to rip off health insurance.

Stefan Gatt, a salesman for a Boca Raton medical laboratory and a model and bodybuilder, on Monday admitted he illegally earned hundreds of thousands of dollars in commissions through his participation in the scheme and agreed to cooperate with investigators in exchange for a lesser sentence.

Wearing a suit and tie, Gatt, 27, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

As a result of his cooperation with investigators, he could face substantially less, if any, time in prison, his attorney Edward Salantrie said after the hearing.

“We worked hard to negotiate a reasonable resolution,” he said.

Authorities said the fraud was led by Kenneth Chatman, who they say owned and served as the chief operating officer of Reflections Treatment Center in Margate.

At Chatman’s request, Gatt agreed to pay kickbacks for fraudulent urine and saliva samples from the treatment center owned by Chatman, Assistant

U.S. Attorney Ann Marie Villafana said in court Monday.

Some of the samples were from employees of the center, and one was from Gatt himself, Villafana said.

Gatt collected those samples and delivered them to American Clinical Solutions, where he worked, for testing knowing that insurance claims for those tests would be submitted to the absent patients’ insurance companies, according to a document filed Monday as part of the plea agreement.

The insurance billings from the samples that Gatt collected from Reflections “were a substantial portion of ACS’s revenues and resulted in substantial increases in Gatt’s salary and hundreds of thousands of dollars in commissions paid to Gatt,” according to the court filing.

American Clinical Solutions billed insurance companies $14 million for urine and saliva samples collected from Reflections and received more than $3.8 million in payments, according to the court filing.

American Clinical Solutions terminated Gatt’s employment on Jan. 30 for cause and denies “any knowledge of Mr. Gatt’s illegal activities and ... had no part in the payment of any monies to Reflections or Mr. Chatman at any time,” according to a company statement issued Monday night.

“While it may be true that demands were made upon Mr. Gatt by Mr. Chatman for the payment of kickbacks; when the demands were relayed to ACS ownership, ACS terminated the relationship with Mr. Chatman and Reflections Treatment Center, LLC immediately,” the statement reads.

Gatt’s duties involved marketing ACS’ services, but “did not involve engaging in illegal behavior which is contrary to ACS’ business practices and culture,” the statement said.

As part of the plea agreement, Gatt agreed to pay restitution.

Recommended sentencing guidelines in the agreement are 46 to 57 months in prison, but courts could reduce that sentence if Gatt fully cooperates.

Gatt’s sentencing is set for April.

Authorities also arrested Chatman’s wife, Laura, as well as Fransesia Davis, Michael Bonds and Joaquin Mendez in the investigation.

Bonds is scheduled for a change-of-plea hearing Tuesday, but no details are available until after the hearing.