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Ex-doctor sentenced to 50 months

WHEELING – A former local doctor was sentenced to 50 months in federal prison Friday after convictions for health care fraud and tax evasion.

Dr. Barton Joseph Adams, a doctor of osteopathic medicine, who owned and operated Interventional Pain Management in Vienna, was sentenced by Chief Judge John Preston Bailey of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in Wheeling, U.S. Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld II said.

Adams, 61, admitted to making fraudulent claims for health care proceeds and willfully attempting to evade taxes, officials said.

In addition to the prison sentence, Adams must forfeit $3,724,721 to the federal government and make restitution of $3,136,293 to the health care providers he defrauded, including Medicare and Medicaid.

“Dr. Adams exploited vital, taxpayer-funded programs and as a result he is going to prison,” Ihlenfeld said. “His conduct was egregious and thanks to the sentence he has been held accountable.”

In March 2009 Adams was found in contempt and has been in custody since due to his failure to return funds he stole and transferred to foreign bank accounts, officials said. The 50-month sentence is in addition to the time he served for contempt. He will receive credit for time served while he was evaluated for competency to stand trial.

Josephine Artillaga Adams, his wife, went to trial in November 2011 and was convicted of assisting him in the laundering of $4 million of health care fraud proceeds. The evidence presented showed the fraud proceeds were first deposited into accounts in West Virginia and then were moved into accounts around the United States before being placed into accounts in Canada, China and the Philippines, officials said.

They were named in the federal indictment from September charging them with conspiracy to obstruct, influence and impede an official proceeding and attempting to do so in violation of U.S. Code.

In counts one and two it was alleged they and others known to the grand jury conspired for her to create a shell company in the British Virgin Islands, Keyfield Ltd. In count three they are charged with the obstruction of justice.

In counts four-16, they are charged with obstruction of justice and attempting to do so, aiding and abetting. In counts 13-16 Josephine Artillaga Adams allegedly negotiated two checks from HSBC Bank of Hong Kong for $8,800.

In a superseding 16-count indictment on Nov. 1, they were charged with two counts of conspiracy to obstruct, influence and impede an official proceeding and attempting to do so and 14 counts of obstruction of justice and attempting to do so, aiding and abetting.

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