(CNN)Two-time Pro Bowl moving backmost Clinton Portis and 2 different erstwhile NFL players person pleaded blameworthy for their roles successful a nationwide wellness attraction payment fraud scheme to taxable mendacious claims for payouts totaling astir $3 million, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
Portis, Tamarick Vanover and Robert McCune admitted to participating successful a strategy to scam the league's retiree wellness attraction benefits plan, which provides tax-free reimbursement to erstwhile players and their families for out-of-pocket aesculapian expenses that are not covered by insurance, the section said.
Prosecutors said McCune, who played eight games successful 4 NFL seasons, was the mastermind.
"McCune orchestrated the nationwide fraud, which resulted successful astir $2.9 cardinal successful mendacious and fraudulent claims being submitted to the Plan and the Plan paying retired astir $2.5 cardinal connected those claims betwixt June 2017 and April 2018," the Justice Department said.
To date, 15 erstwhile players person pleaded blameworthy to charges related to the scheme, prosecutors said.
McCune, 40, pleaded blameworthy to respective charges connected August 24. The erstwhile linebacker who was connected the rosters of Baltimore, Miami and Washington, volition beryllium sentenced connected November 19.
McCune faces a maximum punishment of 20 years successful situation for conspiracy to perpetrate ligament fraud and wellness attraction fraud, 10 years for each number of wellness attraction fraud, 20 years for each number of ligament fraud, and 2 years for each number of aggravated individuality theft.
Portis, 40, and Vanover, 47, pleaded blameworthy Friday to conspiracy to perpetrate wellness attraction fraud and agreed to wage afloat restitution to the wellness plan.
Portis, who reportedly earned much than $43.1 cardinal implicit his nine-year vocation with Denver and Washington, was known for wearing colorful costumes, wigs and oversized sunglasses successful media interviews. But aft retiring with astir 10,000 rushing yards, helium filed for bankruptcy and became 1 of a startling fig of erstwhile NFL players who spell broke aft their playing careers.
Portis is scheduled to beryllium sentenced connected January 6.
Vanover, who spent five seasons arsenic a footwear returner and wide receiver with Kansas City and 1 with San Diego, is scheduled to beryllium sentenced connected January 22.
They each look a maximum punishment of 10 years successful prison.
According to the Justice Department quality release, Portis and Vanover pleaded blameworthy 2 days aft a proceedings against them resulted successful a hung assemblage and a mistrial connected definite counts against Vanover. A retrial connected the charges against Portis and Vanover had been scheduled to statesman Tuesday.
McCune, the 3rd defendant, pleaded blameworthy to each charges against him connected the 2nd time of trial.
CNN has reached retired to the attorneys for the 3 men but has not received immoderate responses.
How the strategy allegedly worked
The scheme, which lasted from June 2017 to December 2018, led to implicit $3.9 cardinal successful mendacious and fraudulent claims, of which the program paid retired much than $3.4 million, prosecutors said successful 2019.
The Gene Upshaw NFL Player Health Reimbursement Account Plan was established arsenic portion of the 2006 corporate bargaining statement betwixt the NFL and the NFL Players' Association.
According to the indictments, the erstwhile players submitted phony claims for costly equipment, including hyperbaric oxygen chambers, ultrasound machines designed for a doctor's bureau to behaviour women's wellness exams, and electromagnetic therapy devices for horses.
The claims were for astir $40,000 to $50,000 each, prosecutors said. They relied connected fabricated invoices, prescriptions and letters of aesculapian necessity, prosecutors said.
In addition, immoderate defendants recruited different retired players to enactment successful the strategy successful speech for kickbacks and bribes that ranged from a fewer 1000 dollars to $10,000 oregon much per claim, prosecutors said.
McCune and Buckhalter adjacent called the wellness benefits plan's telephone enactment and impersonated different players to cheque connected the presumption of the claims, the Justice Department said successful 2019.
Health security institution Cigna flagged anomalies successful the types of claims being filed and referred the fraud to national investigators, then-Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski said.
CNN's Eric Levenson and Jill Martin contributed to this report.
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