In a stunning development, the former CEO of the medical device company Stimwave has been indicted for allegedly creating and selling fake medical device implants.
Laura Perryman, the founder of medical device company Stimwave LLC, has been arrested for her alleged role in a scheme to create and sell non-functional plastic implants for chronic pain treatment.
According to a related federal indictment, Perryman worked with others to manufacture and distribute counterfeit parts, including those used in spinal surgeries.
The components were allegedly created in a way that made them difficult to detect as fakes. The company used counterfeit labels and packaging to deceive customers.
The implants were sold as an alternative to opioid drugs and were marketed as effective, despite not transmitting electricity.
The scheme allegedly began in 2015 and continued until 2019. During this time, the company sold thousands of fake components to medical professionals across the United States.
The indictment claims that the accused and their co-conspirators made millions of dollars from selling the counterfeit parts.
Stimwave has filed for bankruptcy and has agreed to pay $10 million to avoid criminal prosecution and to settle a related civil whistleblower lawsuit.
The government alleges that the fraudulent bills to government insurance programs, including Medicare, resulted in millions of dollars in losses.
The former CEO is now facing multiple charges in multiple lawsuits, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods, and conspiracy to introduce misbranded medical devices into interstate commerce.
Perryman is charged with conspiracy and health care fraud, with the most serious charges carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Her lawyer maintains that the allegations are false.
The announcement of the indictment has sent shockwaves through the medical community, with many expressing concern over the potential harm the fake components could have caused patients.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office has urged anyone who believes they may have been affected by the scheme to contact them for assistance.
The criminal case is in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and the whistleblower case is in the same court.
