Doctor Gets Nearly 2 Years Behind Bars
Friends: Poor Business Acumen Did Him In
By Pete DeLea
Rocktown Weekly (Virginia)
December 17, 2008
HARRISONBURG - Family and friends described Dr. Francis George, a former Luray physician who pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud and tax perjury charges, as a caring man with bad business skills.
A former patient, who later worked for George at his family practice, testified during a sentencing hearing that George's medical skills were remarkable but his business and organizational skills were lacking.
"Dr. George was no businessman. He was a physician," said Rosa Bundy, who said she frequently encouraged George to keep better track of his financial records. "He never gave receipts. He never got receipts."
George, who previously operated CompCare Clinic, was sentenced to nearly two years in federal prison following Tuesday's hearing in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg.
The Case
George, 59, admitted to misusing a $393,000 federal grant when he pleaded guilty to the charges Sept. 26.
In 2003, George applied for and received the grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The grant was to be used to renovate the building that housed George's medical practice, prosecutors said.
Federal prosecutors say George lined his own pockets with the money and frequently "commingled" the funding from the dedicated grant's checking account with his own personal and business accounts.
To get the money, George received payments through a computer program that led to a wire transfer from the Federal Reserve Bank in Richmond into his business account.
George only received $327,000 of the $393,000 grant. Prosecutors say he used that money to make mortgage payments, pay his son's college room and board and make credit card payments.
He also admitted to committing tax perjury for the 2004 tax year by submitting a false return. He listed his total income as $11,484 and failed to report at least an additional $150,000, prosecutors said.
‘A Shattered Dream'
Years ago, friends say George had a vision of one day converting a former Safeway grocery store in Luray into a state-of-the-art medical facility.
The former Cheverly, Md., town councilman dedicated his life to helping others, his friends and family said. Bundy said he would often spend hours with his patients, including the ones who didn't have a dime to pay him for his services.
"Dr. George is an excellent physician," Bundy said in court. "I haven't seen a better one in Virginia. All of his patients are still calling. They all want him back, but that's not possible."
Virginia has revoked his medical license.
George testified that he made substantial improvements to the building and bought new X-ray and ultrasound equipment. He said he made many of the improvements himself and frequently used scrap materials from old buildings.
In some cases, George said, he reimbursed himself, something he said he did not realize was a criminal act.
His brother-in-law, attorney Richard Jordan, testified that George was a giving man who often sacrificed to help others.
However, Jordan said George had one big flaw: a "poor" business sense with sloppy organizational habits.
"Some people create lists and organize files and some people put receipts in a shoe box," Jordan said.
Jordan now believes the future of George's facility is "a shattered dream."
Despite his family and friend's claims, prosecutors say George isn't as innocent as they say.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Hogeboom said that George coded checks to make them look legitimate. He pointed to George's son's tuition checks, which were coded as computer work.
"At some point, he knew he did something wrong and continued to do it," said Hogeboom.
U.S. District Court Judge Glen E. Conrad said the case was unusual but added that George should be punished.
Conrad sentenced George to 21 months in federal prison. He also was ordered to pay roughly $173,000 in restitution.
George's term in federal prison will start after he completes the three months he has remaining on a two-year sentence in state prison for a tax evasion charge. He was convicted in 2005 on more than a dozen charges for embezzlement and tax evasion for failing to withhold state taxes from employee paychecks from 2001 to 2004.
"I really believe you thought this was going to be successful," Conrad told George.
Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6278 or pdelea@dnronline.com
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|
$9,728,569,332,850.00
|
$31,755.18 Per Citizen |
|
