Parkland Chiropractor Pleads Guilty to Insurance Fraud in Staged Accident Ring

A Parkland chiropractor, who prosecutors said approved treatments for patients who fraudulently claimed they were victims of car accidents, pleaded guilty to five criminal charges in connection with an extensive staged-accident insurance fraud ring in South Florida, dubbed Operation Sledgehammer VI.

Court records show that Lawrence Schechtman, the 45-year old chiropractor who worked at clinics in Palm Springs and Miami, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud conspiracy and four counts of mail fraud, occurring between 2009 and 2012.

Co-conspirators in the scheme were found to have prescribed and bill for treatments that were unnecessary or never provided to the ‘victims’ who were sent to these clinics after the staged accidents. Complicit employees then submitted false claims to the insurance companies for payment.

According to an article in the Sun Sentinel on December 9, Schechtman is scheduled to be sentenced on March 3, 2014.  He could face time in prison and fines, in addition to paying restitution of between $1 million and $2.5 million.