Levittown Man Sentenced For Role In $11 Million Insurance Scheme

A Levittown railroad worker has been sentenced to probation after taking part in a large health care fraud scheme, according to federal prosecutors.

David McBrien, 37, of Levittown, pleaded guilty last year to a single count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark, New Jersey, federal court, according to a statement this week from prosecutors.

In addition to probation, McBrien was ordered to pay $234,778 in restitution to the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) Health Care Plan and forfeit $12,800, according to court records.

McBrien was among several Amtrak employees charged in a scheme that federal officials say lasted from January 2019 through June 2022.

According to court documents and statements made in court, McBrien and several co-conspirators agreed to let their health insurance be billed for medically unnecessary services or services that were never actually provided.

In exchange for the billing, the employees received thousands of dollars in cash kickbacks from health care providers, authorities said.

Senior Counsel Philip Lamparello, who is leading the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, identified several other employees who have entered guilty pleas in the case, including Quinton Johnson, 54, of Irvington, N.J.; Gregory Richardson, 36, of Roosevelt, N.Y.; Dion Jacob, 51, of Brooklyn, N.Y.; Kevin Frink, 54, of Willingboro, N.J.; Michael Toal, 35, of Hazlet, N.J.; Damany Walker, 42, of Irvington, N.J.; David Lonergan, 65, of Rockaway Park, N.Y.; and Rodolfo Rivera, 42, of Clayton, Del.

Several of the co-conspirators are still awaiting sentencing.

The providers involved included acupuncturist Punson Figueroa and podiatrist Michael DeNicola, according to prosecutors.

Figueroa was sentenced in September 2024 to two years and 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy.

DeNicola pleaded guilty in June 2022 and is currently awaiting sentencing.

The conspiracy resulted in more than $11 million in fraudulent claims paid out by the Amtrak health care plan.

According to an investigation from the Amtrak Office of Inspector General, the federal government-owned railroad terminated 17 employees and 71 employees resigned due to the probe into the scheme.

The investigation was conducted by special agents from the Amtrak Office of Inspector General, the Amtrak Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Lamparello commended the investigators for their work on the case.