BOSTON (AP) - A Boston man has pleaded guilty to his role in a scheme in which prosecutors say he and his wife intentionally ate glass at restaurants and collected more than 200 thousand dollars U-S in compensation.
Ronald Evano, 49, pleaded guilty to 20 federal counts, including conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and identity theft.
Prosecutors dropped four counts of identity fraud and health care fraud in the plea agreement.
Prosecutors say Evano and his wife, Mary, filed fraudulent insurance claims worth more than 200 thousand dollars, collected more than 200 thousand and left a trail of unpaid medical bills totalling more than 100 thousand in several states between 1997 and 2005.
Prosecutors say the two were treated at hospitals for glass ingestions at least a dozen times.
They collected payments from insurance companies but never paid their hospital bills.
In once instance, they took a $45,000 payment directly from a restaurant.
An arrest warrant was issued last year for Mary Evano on the same charges as her husband. She is still being sought.
Evano said in court he and his wife ate the glass because they needed money.
"We would go to a restaurant and I'd say I had glass in my food," Evano said.
"Then I would go to the hospital and say I was in pain."
Over the years, one or both claimed to have eaten glass at establishments in Braintree and Quincy, Mass.; Bethesda and Gaithersburg, Md.; Washington; Providence, R.I. and Midlothian, Va. The couple used false names, Social Security numbers and identity cards.
Evano is in custody and is to be sentenced next month. He could receive up to 100 years in prison.
joelamosobadiah wrote:DANG, that's bad, but 100 years in prison is just crazy!!!
I've always been a "punishment should fit the crime" type guy.
I say they should make the guy swallow a light-bulb whole and then each person who has been wronged by him (restaurant owners and heads of the insurance companies) gets to take a swing at him, if he makes it through without the bulb breaking he is golden, if the bulb shatters from blow then he gets what he deserves.
joelamosobadiah wrote:DANG, that's bad, but 100 years in prison is just crazy!!!
I've always been a "punishment should fit the crime" type guy.
I say they should make the guy swallow a light-bulb whole and then each person who has been wronged by him (restaurant owners and heads of the insurance companies) gets to take a swing at him, if he makes it through without the bulb breaking he is golden, if the bulb shatters from blow then he gets what he deserves.
The restaurant owners I feel sorry for. The heads of the insurance companies? Eh not so much.
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