RI Man “Exploited” Developmentally Disabled, Scammed $21K in Medicaid Fraud, Receives No Jail Time

RI Man “Exploited” Developmentally Disabled, Scammed $21K in Medicaid Fraud, Receives No Jail Time

The Rhode Island Attorney General’s office announced that a Lincoln man was sentenced in Kent County Superior Court and ordered to pay restitution after pleading to Medicaid fraud and related charges stemming from his falsifying timecards and bank records when he worked as a manager at a group home for adults with developmental disabilities.

Brian Mooney, 36, plead nolo contendere in Kent County Superior Court on Tuesday before Superior Court Magistrate John F. McBurney III to one count of Medicaid fraud and seven counts of exploitation of adults with severe impairments. He is believed to have spent some portion of the money at Twin River.

Mooney was given a five-year deferred sentence and ordered to repay $21,797.61 in restitution to the State of Rhode Island.

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Prosecutors had recommended a sentence of 18 months of imprisonment at the Adult Correctional Institutions in addition to paying full restitution.

“Plain and simple, the defendant’s conduct here was outrageous,” said Attorney General Neronha. “He not only cheated the Medicaid system out of thousands of dollars but stole from and betrayed the trust of some of our most vulnerable residents. My office will continue our efforts to hold accountable individuals who, like the defendant here, divert the all-too-limited available Medicaid dollars from Rhode Islanders who need it.”

Between June 2017 and June 2019, Mooney committed Medicaid fraud while employed as a program manager at Spurwink|RI and exploited several adults with developmental disabilities while he was working at the South County Trail Group Home in East Greenwich, accord to the Attorney General's office.

During this time, Mooney submitted falsified time sheets for hours he claimed he had worked at the group home. Instead, Mooney spent his time gambling at Twin River Casino in Lincoln and in Tiverton, as well as frequenting a local coffee shop and browsing the internet.

In his capacity as a program manager, Mooney was responsible for managing the residents’ bank accounts, which were set up to provide for their daily personal needs, including groceries, toiletries, and clothing. Mooney would frequently skim money from the residents’ personal needs accounts and provide falsified bank records to his supervisors.

When Spurwink|RI suspected fraudulent activity, they immediately terminated Mooney and notified the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals (BHDDH). BHDDH then referred the case to the Office of the Attorney General’s, Medicaid Fraud Control and Patient Abuse Unit.