By Mark Hallum
Four men from Queens, including a Long Island City chiropractor, have been charged in federal court for allegedly perpetrating the “oldest plays in the fraudster handbook” and amassing $31 million from numerous companies in a fake slip-and-fall scheme.
The defendants were arrested April 19 and face charges of mail and wire fraud in an operation that took place beginning in 2013 and recruited various individuals to go into businesses and stage accidents to collect insurance money in lawsuits, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan said.
“As alleged, these defendants employed one of the oldest plays in the fraudster handbook — the fake slip-and-fall routine — to develop a network of ‘fall victims’ to obtain an astonishing $31 million in fraudulent insurance and compensation payouts,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said. “Allegedly, some of the ‘victims’ went as far as having unnecessary surgery to increase the likelihood of a higher settlement. Today, however, these defendants’ fraud careers are over, and they will be forced to answer for their alleged crimes.”
Peter Kalkanis, a Long Island City chiropractor, was named as a defendant for his alleged role providing medical services to the recruited patients who also visited attorneys who filed the lawsuits.
“The intentional misrepresentation of an accidental slip and fall, and the subsequent defrauding of businesses and insurance companies, is a reprehensible crime in and of itself,” FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney Jr. said. “But perhaps the most shocking allegation revealed today is the fact that additional incentives were offered for participants to undergo surgery in order to receive payment for their involvement. One thing is for sure — the alleged activity carried out by Kalkanis and his co-conspirators was no accident, and neither are our charges today.”
Bryan Duncan, Kerry Gordon and Ryan Rainford, all from Queens, were allegedly part of the scheme by recruiting future patients, casing out businesses to target, coaching them on how to fake their injuries and driving the recruits to necessary appointments, according to the U.S. attorney.
Recruits were offered a financial incentive for getting surgery and a percentage of any settlement payment from their lawsuit.
Mail and wire fraud each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years. The sentences the defendants will receive if convicted, however, are at the discretion of U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain, who will be presiding over the case.
Reach reporter Mark Hallum by e-mail at mhall
