Former MetroHealth COO Convicted For Bribery Scheme

CLEVELAND, OH — MetroHealth's former chief operating officer and three other men have been convicted of defrauding the hospital through a series of bribes and kickbacks. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were lost in the group's scheme, the Department of Justice said.

“These defendants ripped off taxpayers and betrayed the community’s trust when they accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and other bribes,” U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman said. “Their egregious, offensive behavior lasted nearly a decade and now they will be held accountable for their actions.”

Edward Hills, the hospital system's former COO, and MetroHealth dentists Sari Alqsous, Yazan B. Al-Madani, and Tariq Sayegh, were all found guilty of criminal charges after a multi-week trial. The four men will be sentenced November 27.

Many of the accusations leveled against the men concerned bribery and racketeering. The DOJ said these bribes included Hills asking for cash, checks, a $3,879 Louis Vuitton briefcase, a 55-inch TV, airline flights, and use of a downtown apartment.

Hills traded a blind eye to the dentists, letting them work at their private dental practices during MetroHealth's regular business hours. Effectively, those willing to bribe Hills were able to receive a full-time salary from MetroHealth and see patients at their private practice.

Investigators presented evidence of these bribes in the form of text messages and meetings at expensive restaurants, which resulted in cash being deposited into Hills' bank accounts.

For example, in 2013, Alqsous sent a text to Al-Madani and another person saying, “With 22nd of October approaching we ll be celebrating Dr hills bday earlier this year…1000 dollars each is the gift from the 3 sons their father.” Later that day, $3,000 appeared in Hills' bank account, the Department of Justice said.

Hills became the interim president and CEO of MetroHealth in December 2012. He then told Alqsous, Al-Madani and other that he wanted a specific Louis Vuitton briefcase because his predecessor had owned a similar briefcase.

Alqsous sent a photo of the briefcase to Hills, saying “The guys are also very excited about their raise haha.” Hills messaged back, “Thanks I’m so excited to have my bag to start my new job as #1.”

Alqsous, Al-Madani and other bough the briefcase from Saks Fifth Avenue in Beachwood and then gave it to Hills, the DOJ noted.

Alqsous began renting and living in an apartment in the Perry Payne building in downtown Cleveland in 2012. When Alqsous later bought a new home, Hills told the dentist to keep renting the downtown apartment, and paying other bills at the building. Hills then used the apartment himself to house an associate.

The former MetroHealth COO told Alqsous to buy furniture for the apartment, after he had moved into a new home. In 2013, Alqsous sent a text message to Hills saying, "I bought your bedroom yesterday…there is mirrors everywhere…You will like it."

This continued through 2014, the DOJ said.

Between 2010 and 2014, Hills regularly increased the bonuses of Alqsous, Al-Madani and others by a total of about $92,829. During that same time period, other dentists typically received a monthly bonus of 25 percent of the monies they generated for excess receipts.

"This investigation unraveled a complex scheme that involved corruption on a number of different levels,” said Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. “Corruption like this has no place in Ohio, and I applaud the work of all our law enforcement partners who investigated and prosecuted this case.”

Scamming Residents

One of the other schemes that generated cash for the group was the scamming of dental residents in the MetroHealth system. Besides allowing Alqsous, Al-Madani and others to double-dip by collecting a full salary from the hospital while working at their private dental clinics, Hills also provided dental residents to work at those practices during regular business hours. Those dental residents were not paid wages or salaries by Alqsous or Al-Madani.

On top of that, Alqsous, Al-Madani and Sayegh would collect bribes from prospective candidates to the MetroHealth Dental residency program. The trio collected nearly $75,000 through this scheme, the DOJ said.

Most years, the MetroHealth Dental residency program took four to six candidates from a pool of 40 to 60 applicants. Alqsous, Sayegh and Al-Madani each had influence on the selection of dental residents. Hills had final authority over who was picked.

Alqsous and Sayegh would target Jordanian candidates, telling them they had to pay a "donation" to MetroHealth to be considered. The candidates would then be told to make that "donation" directly to Alqsous and Sayegh. A portion of the money would then go to Hills, the dentists told the candidates.

The collection of these bribes lasted six years, from 2008 to 2014, the DOJ said.

Blocking Investigators

As law enforcement began closing the noose on Hills and the dentists, the group began telling people not to talk with investigators. The ex-COO also filed false tax returns, in which he failed to claim about $165,751 in unreported income.

That income stemmed from bribes, kickbacks and other things. None of those activities were declared between 2011 and 2013. Some kickback checks between Hills and the dentists were written off as "consultation fees" or "professional fees."

“Edward Hills was placed in the utmost position of trust by MetroHealth, but he chose to abuse that position of trust for his own personal greed and ego,” said Ryan L. Korner, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office.

“These defendants had the opportunity to come clean and tell the truth. Instead, they chose to obstruct the investigation by telling witnesses to not to cooperate with law enforcement. Now they are convicted felons facing a lengthy prison sentences for their crimes. Today’s guilty verdicts are a direct result of the excellent partnership amongst IRS Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, FBI, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Ohio Office of the Inspector General,” Korner added.

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