Healthcare manager charged with taking bribes www.privateofficer.com

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio Dec 7 2011– Federal prosecutors have charged a former manager of a medical equipment company with accepting thousands of dollars worth of bribes, trips to Las Vegas, tickets to sporting events and home improvements from a local construction company.

Pat Boyce, 63, a facilities manager for the local office of Philips Healthcare, was charged in an information (pdf) , which usually indicates that the person has an agreement with officials to plead guilty.

Though Tuesday’s charges stem from a years-long investigation into government corruption in Cuyahoga County, this is the first time that a private company– and not taxpayers — is the primary victim.

Neither Boyce nor his attorney, Charles Swanson, returned calls for comment Tuesday.

According to the charges, the crimes went on over 18 years and included promises of kickbacks on projects in Ohio and California.

Not all the kickbacks promised actually materialized though, according the charges. Prosecutors say Boyce, of Willoughby Hills, accepted the gifts from former D-A-S Construction executive Steven Wayne Pumper in exchange for construction-related projects with the company.

The scheme was first outlined in charges against Pumper more than two years ago. Pumper’s former company had more than $9 million in contracts with Philips and made more than $1.7 million in profit, according to the charges.

In some instances, federal officials say Pumper and Boyce discussed markups of between $25,000 and $50,000 that were figured into bids as kickbacks.

In other instances, work was done on Boyce’s home and the homes of other Philips employees and their families for free or at a significant discount.

Pumper has already pleaded guilty to corruption-related charges and could be sentenced to up to six year in prison.

The majority of the charges Pumper pleaded guilty to involve bribing or influencing public officials, such as former County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora. Dimora has said he is innocent and is set to be tried in January where Pumper would likely testify against him.

Philips Healthcare spokesman Steve Kelly said the company was victimized and taken advantage of by their former employee.

The international healthcare technology giant, owned by the Dutch Royal Philips Electronics, had policies prohibiting its employees from using the company’s contractors to perform work on their personal residences, prosecutors said.

Source:cleveland.com