NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WVEC) — A Glen Allen man pleaded guilty to posing as a doctor at a free clinic in Newport News and seeing nearly two dozen patients.
Vishal J. Patel, 31, supposedly used the personal information of licensed physicians to pose as a doctor in online employment applications to medical staffing companies according to the indictment.
The indictment stated that he falsely claimed to be a licensed doctor in Virginia and to support his claims created and submitted false diplomas and certificates concerning his education, training, certifications, and licenses which included registration and licensing numbers from licensed physicians.
Patel posed as the physicians when contacting oversight agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration and directed them to alter the doctors' licensing records so they would appear to be associated with Patel. He then instructed the different agencies to mail him copies of the records.
Through the scheme, Patel was employed fraudulently as an independent contractor through various medical staffing agencies including one free clinic in Newport News where he saw nearly two dozen patients before being fired. The clinic fired him because they were unable to verify his records.
The 31-year-old pleaded guilty Monday, Dec. 3 to furnishing false information in a DEA record and aggravated identity theft. He faces a maximum sentence of four years and a mandatory consecutive term of two years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for March 19, 2019.
