11th Circuit Upholds Convictions of Scientists For Defrauding Government Programs

Breaking 911: Tampa, Florida – The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has affirmed the convictions for two Belleair Beach scientists, Mahmoud Aldissi (a/k/a Matt) and his wife Anastassia Bogomolova (a/k/a Anastasia), for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and falsification of records. The Court’s opinion describes how Aldissi and Bogomolova lied about their facilities, equipment, and employees, fabricated price quotes, and forged endorsements from respected scientists to obtain $10.5 million in small-business research funding from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and other government agencies. When government officials began investigating, the defendants submitted falsified business records for their companies, Fractal Systems, Inc. and Smart Polymers Research Corp., to cover up the fraud.

The Eleventh Circuit explained that had Congress established the programs that Aldissi and Bogomolova defrauded in order to provide qualified small businesses with research-and-development support to turn research into actual commercial products and services. In a highly competitive process, researchers submit detailed proposals outlining their research, a panel of experts selects winners, and the winning proposals become contracts between the researchers and the government for the research.  more here