A doctor with practices in Colts Neck and Staten Island, N.Y., was sentenced to 24 months in prison for accepting bribes in exchange for test referrals as part of a long-running and elaborate scheme operated by Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services (BLS) of Parsippany, the company’s president and numerous associates, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Ralph Messo, 56, of Colts Neck, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler to an information charging him with one count of accepting bribes. Chesler imposed the sentence on May 10 in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this and related cases and statements made in court, Messo admitted he accepted bribes in return for referring patient blood specimens to BLS and was paid approximately $3,000 per month. Messo’s referrals generated at least $828,000 in lab business for BLS.
In addition to the prison term, Chesler sentenced Messo to two years of supervised release and fined him $4,000.
According to the U.S. Attorney, the investigation has thus far resulted in 53 convictions – 38 of them doctors – in connection with the bribery scheme, which its organizers have admitted involved millions of dollars in bribes and resulted in more than $100 million in payments to BLS from Medicare and private insurance companies. It is believed to be the largest number of medical professionals ever prosecuted in a bribery case.
The investigation has to date recovered more than $13 million through forfeiture. On June 28, 2016, BLS, which is no longer operational, pleaded guilty and was required to forfeit all of its assets.
