Last month the FBI raided a home of the CEO of a bankrupt hospital chain and one of its hospitals in Pennsylvania for a company that is connected to James Biden, brother of former Vice President Joe Biden.
The raid and investigation was disclosed in federal documents this month by the acting receiver overseeing the bankruptcy case of the Florida company Americore Holdings, which acquires and manages rural hospitals.
Real Clear Investigations reports:
The filing in Kentucky by the federal trustee, Paul A. Randolph, seeks the appointment of a trustee specifically to oversee the bankruptcy case, or otherwise the dismissal of the firm’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors. It said the company’s CEO, Grant White, had “grossly mismanaged” his business; “has not operated the hospitals in a manner that is consistent with public safety”; and “improperly siphoned money from the Debtors for his personal benefit.”
The firm declared bankruptcy in December. On Jan. 29, the court documents say, the FBI raided White’s home at a location unspecified and, the next day, one of its hospitals, Ellwood City Medical Center in Pennsylvania. A week later a Kentucky court granted a motion to remove White as CEO.
The federal trustee’s filing did not mention the younger brother of the current Democratic presidential candidate. This past summer, however, James Biden and White were named in a lawsuit alleging fraud, along with Biden’s partner, hedge fund manager Michael Lewitt. The lawsuit, filed by Tennessee businessman Michael Frey and his partner Dr. Mohannad Azzam, owners of Diverse Medical Management, also named Amer Rustom, another investor in Americore along with Biden and Lewitt.
The lawsuit alleges that James Biden had a prominent role in the company. One exhibit filed in the lawsuit is a photograph of an Americore business card that Biden reportedly handed out listing him as a “principal” in the company.
Frey alleges that when Diverse Medical Management and Americore were in talks to merge, Jim Biden promised to exploit his brother’s political influence as vice president to attract international investors and make the venture successful.
According to the report Lewitt alluded to the Vice President’s clout in a text message telling Frey to calm down about the legal liability, “Jim [Biden] told me. Don’t worry every time someone threatens to sue you you’re with us now nobody is gonna touch you.” According to the lawsuit, “It was Frey’s understanding that Lewitt was implying that DMM [Diverse Medical Management] was ‘protected’ because of Jim Biden’s connections.”
Biden and the other defendants in the lawsuit are said to have caused Frey and Azzam to take out loans and purchase some failing rural hospitals in hopes that they could turn them around. Both Frey and Azzam used their own money to make the purchases because Biden claimed he would pay them back with secure investments from a international holding company.
This is where it gets juicy, Biden accidentally texted Frey his plans to take over Diverse medical management and cut out Frey and Azzam, “We can wrap [Americore] into Frey’s entity further diluting them both in the process? After we take control of both. Just a thought. We must have complete control, too many moving pieces. Jim.”
Not long after Diverse medical management was financially overextended and could not make payroll before filing the lawsuit.
Politico is also reporting that in the weeks after the raid, two medical firms that were involved in the deal with James Biden claim to have evidence that he transferred funds from Americore “outside of the ordinary course of business” in the amount of more than half a million dollars.
Recently the defendants in the lawsuit are getting nervous, after the FBI raid and the removal of White as CEO of Americore the defendants are starting to file motions on each other to keep themselves out of hot water.
If you would like more detail you can read the entire Real Clear Investigation here and you can read the federal complaint here.
Real Clear Investigations | Politico
