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By CotoBlogzz
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Santa Margarita, CA – According to FBI, today, Sharon M. Helman, 45, of
Surprise, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steven P. Logan to a term
of two years’ probation. Helman previously pleaded guilty to making a
false statement to a government agency, a felony offense.
Helman was director of the Phoenix VA hospital from February 2012 to December
2014. Federal law required Helman to annually complete and file a
financial disclosure report and to disclose, among many other things, gifts
received during the applicable calendar year. In March 2014, Helman
submitted a financial disclosure in which she falsely reported that she
received no gifts during 2013. That report was false because during 2013
Helman had, in fact, received gifts totaling more than $19,300. The gifts
included an automobile, a check for $5,000, concert tickets, and two round-trip
airline tickets.
Helman also filed a false report for 2012, failing to report four gifts of a
total value of more than $2,000. Furthermore, although she did not file a
financial disclosure report for 2014, Helman received six gifts valued at more
than $27,700 between January 2 and July 1 of that year.
All of the gifts were from a former high-level VA employee who once served as
Helman’s supervisor. During 2012-2014, that person was an executive
consultant, and later vice president, of a consulting and lobbying firm that
assisted companies in expanding their business with the VA. Had Helman
properly reported the gifts and their source, the VA would have done a
conflict-of-interest analysis to determine whether her acceptance of the gifts
was permitted under applicable laws and regulations.
The investigation in this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation and the Department of Veterans Affairs-Office of the Inspector
General.
The
prosecution was handled by Frank T. Galati, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District
of Arizona, Phoenix.
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