U.S. Department of Justice Alice H. Martin United States Attorney Northern District of Alabama

HEALTHCARE FRAUD AND INCOME TAX EVASION INDICTMENT RETURNED AGAINST HOSPITAL COMPUTER DIRECTOR

BIRMINGHAM, AL - United States Attorney Alice H. Martin of the Northern District of Alabama and Gail J. Kenney, Acting Special Agent in Charge-Criminal Investigation Division, Internal Revenue Service announce today that TIMOTHY V. BUCKNER has been indicted by a federal grand jury for healthcare fraud and income tax evasion.

BUCKNER, 41, of Springville, Alabama, was charged in a eight-count indictment filed today at U. S. District Court in Birmingham.

BUCKNER was the Director of Technology at Eastern Health System, Inc., Birmingham, Alabama. The indictment charges Buckner with setting up a nominee business name, "Network Services, Inc., Division of Network Partners, Inc.", an unincorporated entity which allegedly provided computer services. Network Services, Inc., consisted of a letterhead, a mail-drop address, and a checking account set up in his wife's social security number. Buckner created and submitted bogus claims in the name of Network Services, Inc., for purported computer goods and services, representing them to be legitimate, for the purpose of causing Eastern Health System, Inc., to issue checks in payment of the alleged goods and services. Buckner received the checks from Eastern Health System, Inc., deposited the checks into the Network Services bank account. and spent the proceeds. He did not report the proceeds as income on his 1999, 2000 and 2001 federal tax returns.

The maximum sentence is 45 years in prison and $2 million fine.

"All income from whatever source, is taxable income, even income generated by fraud. Convictions for healthcare fraud and tax fraud carry stiff sentences," stated U.S. Attorney Alice H. Martin.

Special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorney Ron Brunson is prosecuting this case.

Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only charges. A defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government's burden to prove a defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.

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