Twelve indicted for fraud

CAPE CORAL — A dozen people were indicted on Thursday on various charges of fraud for staging accidents and operating chiropractic clinics that billed insurers for bogus claims.

Federal prosecutors alleged that physical rehabilitation clinics Xtreme Care Rehabilitation Center and C & A Family Rehab Center in Cape Coral were operating as unlicensed health care clinics since 2009. The owners of the clinics recruited people to stage accidents and injuries.

After the alleged fake accidents, the clinics billed insurance companies for treatment that was neither provided nor medically necessary. Federal prosecutors did not disclose a dollar amount of claims in a statement.

The 12 individuals, including licensed chiropractor Stephen Lovell, 54, of Windermere, were charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, among other charges.

Besides Lovell, they include:
- Joanna Capote, 24, of Cape Coral;
- Francisco Huici Fernandez, 39, of Cape Coral;
- Ernesto Diaz, 30, of Cape Coral;
- Karen Carmona Jackson, 29, of Lake Wales;
- Jeanine Lastres Huici, 41, of Cape Coral;
- Marylda Santana, 21, of Cape Coral;
- Sonya Arroyo, 52, of Cape Coral;
- Indra Lemus Castellanos, 19, of Cape Coral;
- Abel de Jesus Perez, 43, of Cape Coral;
- Victor Caballero Duarte, 22, of Cape Coral; and
- Adrian Perez, 21, of Cape Coral.