More than two dozen individuals, including the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Spoon Network, Stanton Witherspoon, have been charged in the Southern District of Florida for their alleged participation in a wire fraud scheme that created an illegal licensing and employment shortcut for aspiring nurses.
According to three recently unsealed indictments returned by a South Florida federal grand jury and two informations filed by federal prosecutors, defendants engaged in a scheme to sell fraudulent nursing degree diplomas and transcripts obtained from accredited Florida-based nursing schools to individuals seeking licenses and jobs as registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/VNs).
The bogus diplomas and transcripts qualified purchasers to sit for the national nursing board exam and, after passing it, to obtain licenses and jobs in various states as RNs and LPN/VNs. The overall scheme involved the distribution of more than 7,600 fake nursing diplomas issued by three South Florida-based nursing schools: Siena College in Broward County, Fla., Palm Beach School of Nursing in Palm Beach County, Fla., and Sacred Heart International Institute in Broward County. These schools are now closed.
Each defendant faces up to 20 years imprisonment.
“Not only is this a public safety concern, it also tarnishes the reputation of nurses who actually complete the demanding clinical and course work required to obtain their professional licenses and employment,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Markenzy Lapointe, said. “A fraud scheme like this erodes public trust in our health care system.”
“Health care fraud is nothing new to South Florida, as many scammers see this as a way to earn easy, though illegal, money, “said acting Special Agent in Charge Chad Yarbrough, FBI Miami. “What is disturbing about this investigation is that there are over 7,600 people around the country with fraudulent nursing credentials who are potentially in critical health care roles treating patients. Were it not for the diligence and hard work of the investigators on this case, the extent of this fraud may not have been discovered.”
The charges speak to the purpose of a nursing license which is to protect the public from harm by setting minimum qualifications and competencies.
“The alleged selling and purchasing of nursing diplomas and transcripts to willing but unqualified individuals is a crime that potentially endangers the health and safety of patients and insults the honorable profession of nursing,” said Special Agent in Charge Omar Pérez Aybar of Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “In coordination with our law enforcement partners, HHS-OIG continues to aggressively investigate bad actors who so brazenly disregard the well-being of others in order to enrich themselves fraudulently.”
The charging documents describe Siena College as a Broward County school licensed by the Florida Commission for Independent Education and the Florida Board of Nursing that offers a Practical Nursing Program and an RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program. Eunide Sanon managed Siena College.
The indictment charges defendants Stanton Witherspoon of Burlington County N.J.; Alfred Sellu of Burlington County N.J.; and Rene Bernadel of Westchester County, N.Y. with conspiring to commit and committing wire fraud. The indictment alleges that Witherspoon, Sellu, and Bernadelsolicited and recruited individuals who sought nursing credentials to gain employment as an RN or LPN/VN. It is alleged that these defendants arranged with Sanon, who managed Siena College and is charged by information with wire fraud conspiracy, to create and distribute false and fraudulent diplomas and transcripts. These fake documents represented that the aspiring RN and LPN/VN candidates had attended Siena College’s nursing program in Broward County and completed the necessary courses and clinicals to obtain RN or LPN/VN diplomas. In fact, the aspiring nurses never completed the necessary courses and clinicals.
The information against Sanon alleges that he and others sold thousands of fake Siena College nursing diplomas and educational transcripts to nursing applicants who used them to obtain RN or LPN/VN licenses in various states and nursing jobs with unwitting health care providers throughout the country.
In a special message posted on the Spoon Network’s Facebook page, Stanton Witherspoon wrote, “My fellow Liberians, With a very heavy heart, I bring you greetings today. Despite all we have heard about my challenges, I feel a sense of obligation to address you all today.
“However, I certainly hope that we can all appreciate that I am restricted from going into additional details beyond this, for now, on the expressed advice and instructions of my legal team.
“While I am very aware of your desire to get even more details on these charges, I can only appeal to you all to let the investigation and legal process play out. While temptation pushes me to address this matter in far more detail, I have to abide by my legal team’s instructions.
“Like a patient following a doctor’s orders, it is my legal team’s work in this matter that will bring the best legal resolution. It is my legal team, and not even myself personally, who is in direct, regular contact with the investigating authorities and it is their advice that guides me in addressing it.
“My friends and fellow Liberians, to those of you, who out of humanity, decency, and sheer kindness, whether you vehemently disagree with me or not, have reached out with messages of encouragement, publicly rejected the condemnation, or just remembered me and my family in your prayers, I thank God for the better angels that you are and wish you all well. I only ask for your continued prayers and encouragement for my family and me.
“At the appropriate time, I hope that the full facts will provide the necessary clarity on this matter.
“Going forward, in this very pivotal election season, Spoon Talk will continue its commitment to keep the Liberian people informed globally and provide education leading up to the presidential and general elections. Our commitment to our people does not take a backseat to our trials and challenges.
“There is a greater being who orders our paths and steps, certainly mine. I thank you.”