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TYLER — United States Attorney John M. Bales announced Wednesday that two men have pleaded guilty in Tyler to participating in a multi-state health care fraud scheme. Kevin Onwudiwe, 36, of Houston, pleaded guilty late Tuesday during an appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Judith Guthrie. Jasper Ogbonna, 41, of Newark, Delaware, pleaded guilty before Judge Guthrie on September 27. A sentencing date has not been set for either man.

According to information presented in Court, from August 2005 through April 2008, Ogbonna controlled and operated Matrix Medical Equipment and Supplies, Inc., in Weirton, West Virginia. Onwudiwe assisted in the operation of Nicco Medical Services, LLC in Little Rock, Arkansas. Both companies provided durable medical equipment to Medicare beneficiaries.

Ogbonna, Onwudiwe and their co-conspirators devised and carried out a scheme to defraud Medicare through the marketing of “ortho kits,” which consisted of a bag of orthotic items such as braces, wraps and supports. As part of the scheme, Ogbonna, Onwudiwe and their co-conspirators illegally obtained protected Medicare beneficiary health information, including names, dates of birth, and Medicare and Social Security numbers from elderly individuals. Approximately 509 Medicare beneficiaries in Texas and Louisiana were supplied with “ortho kits” which were not prescribed or authorized by a physician and were not wanted by the beneficiaries. In many instances, physicians’ signatures were forged and false claims were submitted by Medicare in the names of Medicare beneficiaries who were deceased.

Using protected health information, the defendants and their co-conspirators billed between $4,850 and $6,550 for each “ortho kit,” causing the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare of more than $2.8 million dollars. As a result of these claims, Ogbonna, Onwudiwe and their co-conspirators unlawfully obtained more than $1,095,000.00 from Medicare.

This case was investigated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) and the Texas Office of the Attorney General – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (OAG-MFCU). The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Nathaniel Kummerfeld.

BULLARD – A boil water notice from the City of Bullard is lifted Wednesday morning. Bullard Director of Public Works David Hortman says the boil notice went into effect Tuesday after a water main break. According to KETK, this morning, all test results were clean. The water is now safe to drink without boiling.

NACOGDOCHES — Investigators have one person in custody and are searching for another in the death of a Nacogdoches man. He was stabbed multiple times shortly after 10:45 Monday night at the Austin Place Apartments in the 3200 block of North Street. Thomas Grimes, 49, was found covered in blood in the apartment’s parking lot. Investigators believe the disturbance started inside Grimes’ apartment.

Arrested Tuesday afternoon at the Nacogdoches Police Department was Milton Brown, 18. The homeless man had been named in a murder warrant. Another homeless man has also been name in a murder warrant. He is identified as Nathan Welsh, 22. Nacogdoches police describe Welsh as a black male about 5’6” and weighing around 142 pounds. They say he should be considered armed and dangerous.

BIG SANDY — A big 10 to 12 acre fire north of Big Sandy has been contained. KETK-TV reports it was reported around 1:00 Tuesday afternoon with firemen from Big Sandy, Pritchett and Pleasant Grove Fire Departments along with crews from the Texas Forrest Service responding. Officials say the fire was started by a train.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Texas toy company has filed a lawsuit alleging toy maker MGA Entertainment stole its idea for a tiny robotic bug. Innovation First Inc. filed the suit in Hunt County, Texas last week over its Hexbug Nano toy. The lawsuit alleges that MGA copied Innovation First and marketed a copycat called “Legend of Nara Battling Bugs.”

The Greenville, Texas company is seeking damages and MGA’s profits from selling its version of the thumb-sized insect robots, plus interest. An MGA spokeswoman did not immediately return a call or e-mail.

MGA is also in a legal battle with toy giant Mattel over who owns the popular Bratz doll line. A California appeals court overturned a $100 million reward for Mattel in that case.
It will be retried in January.

TYLER — The University of Texas at Tyler Alumni Association has recognized seven graduates as the 2010 Distinguished Alumni, Derrith Bondurant, director of alumni and foundation relations, announced. Dr. Wesley Dennis, Dr. Fredrick W. Kersh, Rick Rayford and Scott Rhame are recipients of the Professional Achievement and Attainment Award. Melinda Hermanns is recipient of the Young Alumni Award. Two awards added this year are the Service Award and Recognition Award. Terrence R. Ates and Michael J. Collins are the recipients, respectively. The seven outstanding alumni will be featured at a luncheon from 11:30 a.m. till 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 22, at the UT Tyler Ornelas Activity Center. The event is part of UTT’s 2010 Homecoming. Honorees are chosen based on outstanding contributions to their chosen profession, the university, or service organizations since graduation from UT Tyler.

Dennis earned a bachelor of science degree from UT Tyler in 1989. A native of Athens, he serves as the Arlington Sleep Disorder Center medical director and has been a neurologist in private practice since 1998. Dennis is a past chair of the Neuroscience Department and past director of Neurological Rehabilitation Unit – Medical Center of Arlington.

A preeminent physician in the field of family practice, Kersh earned a bachelor of science degree from UT Tyler in 1982. He serves as medical director for the Direct RehabMed Business Health in Tyler and was a past medical director of the Emergency Centers for East Texas Medical Center.

Rayford earned a bachelor of business administration degree from UT Tyler in 1976. He’s served as president and CEO of Brookshire Grocery Company since 2007. A 39-year partner of Brookshire’s, Rayford currently serves on the UT Tyler Development Board, UT Tyler College of Business and Technology Corporate Advisory Board and Regional East Texas Food Bank Board.

Rhame earned a master of arts from UT Tyler in 1975. Retired in May, he served as a high school band teacher, most recently at Carlisle High School. During his 41-year career, he received numerous honors as well as regional and state awards, including 13 consecutive UIL Sweepstakes Awards for his bands, and was a three-time Texas Music Association Honor Band winner.

Hermanns earned bachelor of science and master of science degrees from UT Tyler in 1995 and 1998, respectively. An assistant professor of nursing at UT Tyler, she has been recognized for her psychiatric mental health and Parkinson’s Disease research and scholarly excellence in clinical simulation. She holds leadership in the East Texas chapter of the American Parkinson’s Disease Association.

Ates earned bachelor of arts and master of education degrees from UT Tyler in 2006 and 2008, respectively. He is the Tyler Prostate Cancer Awareness Program manager and People Educating Communities about Tobacco chair. Ates also is a planning member of the Tobacco Law Enforcement Conference and Prostate Health Initiative for Gregg and Smith Counties, as well as a member of several regional health coalitions and committees.

A licensed private investigator, Collins earned a bachelor of business administration degree from UT Tyler in 1994. He is the owner of Collins Investigations. A UT Tyler Alumni Life member since 2001, Collins also has served on the UT Tyler Development Board and as Alumni Association president since 2007.

TYLER — A local state House race takes center stage at a Tyler candidate forum. Republican District 7 hopeful David Simpson met Libertarian opponent Eric Brandt in the League of Women Voters event. Both support the tea party movement, and both have fiscal concerns. Brandt favors an extremely lean government, while Simpson is looking to cut spending and “stop chasing federal dollars.”

Several candidates were available for one-on-one questioning but didn’t take part in the forum because their opponents did not appear. The candidates on hand included Libertarian Charles Parkes III, who opposes incumbent Republican Louie Gohmert and independent Trent Gale in the District 1 congressional race. Also available was Democrat Lenis Pierce, who’s running against Republican District Attorney Matt Bingham. Democrat Blake Bailey was at the forum as well; he opposes the GOP’s Eva Guzman and Libertarian Jack Armstrong in the race for State Supreme Court, Place 9. In other activity at the forum, two entries from Whitehouse High School and one from Robert E. Lee were announced as winners in a student video competition on getting out the vote.

LONGVIEW — After a two day battle, a wildfire in North Longview is under control. The blaze started Saturday afternoon off Airline Road and East Plyler Precise. KETK reports it was finally contained early Monday morning, but smoke continued to waft into a nearby neighborhood. Fire officials say the smoke isn’t a danger, but an emergency burn ban has been issued for Gregg County.

TYLER (AP/Staff) – A jury in Tyler has ordered Apple to pay $625.5 million for violating patents owned by a firm founded by a computer science professor. Apple Inc. is challenging Friday’s verdict from the federal court in Tyler, saying the court has not yet looked at some of its counterclaims. If upheld, the verdict would be one of the largest in a patent suit. The plaintiff is Mirror Worlds, a company founded by David Gelernter of Yale University to commercialize his ideas. The patents cover characteristic Mac features such as Cover Flow, which lets the users skim through album covers or other content as if they were leaves in a book. Another is Time Machine, which performs automatic backups.

TYLER — Another Brookshire’s WWII Heroes Flight takes 36 World War II veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the World War II Memorial and other sites. There is no charge for the veterans selected for the trip, which began Tuesday and continues Wednesday.

“Our first trip to Washington with World War II veterans was so rewarding for all of us we’ve decided to do it again with a new group of east Texas veterans,” said Rick Ellis, chief marketing officer for Brookshire Grocery Company, when the trip was announced in August. Ellis added that the response from the veterans desiring to go in May was overwhelming. “We received more applications for our May trip than we could possibly take,” Ellis said in August. “In fact we received so many that our October flight is already full from those who applied earlier and we still have additional applicants.”

In addition to the World War II Memorial, the group was expected to visit the Iwo Jima Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and the United States Capitol. “We are very grateful for the service provided by these veterans,” said Ellis. “The freedoms we enjoy today were defended by these veterans and many others from different conflicts.” Veterans participating in the trip are from many different communities, including Tyler, Longview, Kilgore, Wills Point, Overton, Gladewater, Pittsburg, Canton, Whitehouse, Hideaway, Chandler and Mineola.

Veterans interested in participating in possible future opportunities can apply by calling (903) 534-3076 and requesting an application. Noting that the World War II Memorial was not built until 2004, Ellis added, “Most of these veterans have never had a chance to see their memorial. We’re thrilled to provide this opportunity to these 36 from our market area.” “We realize time is of the essence for this generation,” Ellis said. “While there’s no way of having an exact figure, the estimates are that we are losing them nationally at a rate of about 1,000 per day. We don’t have a lot of time left to honor them in this way.”

TYLER — At a breakfast Tuesday morning, Trinity Mother Frances announces a gift from Louis & Peaches Owen in the amount of $18 million to launch the Louis & Peaches Owen Heart Hospital. The facility will be a seven-story stand-alone hospital on the same campus as Trinity Mother Frances Hospital that is totally dedicated to cardiac care and surgery. Spokesman John Moore says the new structure will offer services not seen in the area before — “and a concentrated cardiac effort that we think is gonna bring patients from not just across the country, but from around the world.” It is slated for completion in 2012.

The Owen family gift constitutes more than half of the total amount necessary to complete the project. Trinity Mother Frances will soon begin a capital campaign in the community to raise the rest of the funds necessary to finish the hospital.

SMITH COUNTY — A truck driver from New York is in trouble in East Texas. A Smith County Deputy Constable pulled over Marcus Jarrett, 35, of Elmira, NY. He’s now in the Smith County Jail charged with a 2nd degree felony. According to KETK, on Sunday morning, Precinct 5 Constable Mark Waters stopped the trucker in Lindale for driving on the shoulder of the road. After Jarrett refused to give consent to a search, a drug dog indicated probable cause. After finding several bundles of marijuana in a closet of the truck, it was impounded for a full search and Deputy Waters says in all a total of 12 bundles and 309 pounds of marijuana were discovered. Jarrett’s bond is set at $500,000.

NACOGDOCHES — One person has been killed and one injured in a one vehicle accident in Nacogdoches. It happened around 6:00 Monday morning near the intersection of Southeast Stallings Drive and Press Road. Killed was Carolyn Burke Risinger, 67, of Lufkin. Her husband, Jim Risinger, 69, is being treated at Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital. Police report indicate the couple’s car left the road to the right and hit a culvert, became airborne for about 75 feet and hit a sign pole.

TYLER — To raise awareness of women’s cancer, Tyler Firefighters are inviting the entire community to don their pink shirts for the second annual Turn Tyler Pink event It’s today from 5:00 to 8:00pm on the Downtown Square. The event will feature the Pink Heals Tour, a caravan of pink fire trucks that travel the country to raise awareness of cancer. The trucks are signed by thousands of people who have been affected by the disease. There will also be a blood drive, health information, music, free screenings, food, and of course – firefighters in pink.

“The inspirational messages written on the trucks about the ravages of this disease and the spirit of those who are fighting it is something everyone should see,” said Tyler Mayor Barbara Bass, a breast cancer survivor. “This event is an opportunity for the entire community to come out and honor those who have been affected by cancer. We are particularly excited to welcome “Tonya” (a Tyler Fire truck given to the Pink Heals Tour in 2009) back to Tyler, showing off her new pink paint and messages from cancer survivors from around the U.S.”

Turn Tyler Pink shirts and caps can be purchased at:

* Gallery Main Street – 110 W. Erwin;
* Carter Blood Care – 815 S. Baxter; and,
* Holiday Inn South Broadway – 5701 S. Broadway.

Proceeds from the sale of Turn Tyler Pink shirts benefit local cancer organizations. In 2009, the Tyler Firefighters CARE Fund donated more than $20,000 to organizations that support the fight against cancer.

KILGORE — Gregg County authorities investigate a shooting at a local club. Around 2:00 Sunday morning, field deputies were sent to a reported shooting at Tony’s Wild Thing on Texas 31 west of Kilgore. Through the investigation, investigators learned that a 21-year-old-male had been shot and was taken to an area hospital for emergency treatment and surgery. Investigators have identified a suspect in this shooting and have charged Ricky Walker, 21, of Kilgore by criminal complaint with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Investigators want Walker to contact them. The victim was shot in his upper body, and his condition is unknown today. Others who have information about this case or Walker can call 903-236-8400 or Crime Stoppers at 903-236-STOP.