A New Jersey man who sent thousands of fraudulent billing invoices to hospitals, clinics and doctor’s offices throughout the country has been sentenced to more than five years in federal prison.
Robert S. Armstrong, 49, of Turnersville, defrauded his victims out of more than $200,000, federal prosecutors said. He had pleaded guilty in January to mail fraud.
Armstrong received a 41-month sentence Friday for the scheme. And since he was convicted in 2015 of running a similar scheme that targeted schools, he got an additional two-year prison term for violating his probation on those charges.
He also will have to serve three years of supervised release once he's freed and must pay full restitution.
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A message seeking comment was left Monday with his lawyer.
In the most recent scheme, which operated under the company name of Pinnacle Medical Supplies, Armstrong sent out invoices that billed hospitals, clinics and doctors’ offices for medical supplies such as diabetic test strips and sanitizing wipes that they never ordered nor received.
Armstrong also contracted with a legitimate bulk mailing company to mail more than 10,000 invoices to medical providers across the United States. Each invoice included a payment envelope pre-addressed to Pinnacle Medical Supply at mail boxes Armstrong had set up with commercial mail receiving agents in Florida and Texas.
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At least 943 medical providers sent $214,495 overall to Pinnacle Medical Supply, prosecutors said. Armstrong deposited many of the checks into a bank account he opened in the company’s name.
