Tampa, FL – A federal jury has convicted Lino Mallari Gutierrez, also known as “Joe Gutierrez,” of Palm City, on charges including conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud, conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickback statute, five counts of health care fraud, and four counts of paying kickbacks in connection with a health care program. Following the verdict, Gutierrez was taken into custody and now faces a potential 20-year prison sentence, with sentencing set for July 24, 2025.
Gutierrez was indicted on August 22, 2023. During the trial, evidence revealed that Gutierrez and his associates, including Jonathan Rouffe, operated two durable medical equipment (DME) companies that fraudulently billed Medicare over $10.9 million for unnecessary medical equipment. More than $5 million of these funds were directed to Gutierrez and his co-conspirators. As part of their scheme, they paid kickbacks to marketing firms to obtain signed doctors’ orders for unneeded braces, which were then used to bill Medicare. These marketing companies employed call centers to target Medicare patients and telemedicine companies to acquire prescriptions for unnecessary braces.
To obscure their involvement, Gutierrez and Rouffe registered the DME companies under straw owners’ names. Additionally, Gutierrez falsified records with his employer and a private regulatory body to hide his connection to the DME companies. The duo was in the process of setting up four more DME companies with other straw owners, including Gutierrez’s mother and friends, when the scheme was uncovered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). This was part of a broader national operation originating in the Middle District of Florida, which led to the identification, charging, and conviction of dozens of co-conspirators.
Before law enforcement intervened, Gutierrez and Rouffe had initiated steps to exploit these additional companies for further fraudulent Medicare claims. Once aware of the investigation, Gutierrez transferred Medicare funds from his account to others he controlled.
Rouffe had previously admitted guilt to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and received a four-year prison sentence for his involvement.
The case was investigated by the HHS-OIG and the FBI, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Peresie and Trial Attorney Margaret Mortimer from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
