Three members of an Acadiana family have pleaded guilty in a fraud case, federal court records show.
Back in April, we reported that a federal grand jury indicted a man and his two daughters on conspiracy and wire fraud charges, alleging they schemed to collect money meant to provide nutritious food to children and adults served by in-home daycares.
Records show that all three have pleaded guilty, and one of the daughters was sentenced on Wednesday.
Lenzi Desormeaux Babineaux, 35, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. She also must pay a $10,000 fine and $46,317.34 in restitution. The judge gave her until January 6 to report to the prison selected by the government.
Brian Desormeaux, 64, Amy Desormeaux Hernandez, 38 and Babineaux were all indicted on one count conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count wire fraud, accused of defrauding the Child and Adult Care Food Program, a federal program.
Court records show that Brian Desormeaux pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Amy Hernandez pleaded guilty to wire fraud and Lenzi Babineaux pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Desormeaux and Hernandez pleaded guilty last month; Babineaux entered her guilty plea in June, records show.
All three face up to 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.
Here's the government's allegation of the scheme, according to the indictment:
Regional Nutrition Assistance, Inc. (“RNA”) was a Louisiana non-profit corporation located in Scott, Louisiana and was owned and operated by Brian Desormeaux. He served as Executive Director with his daughter Amy serving as Assistant Director and his daughter Lenzi acting as Senior Program Manager.
RNA was a “Sponsoring Organization” for the Program and was responsible for administering it in certain locations, including “Day Care Homes,” which are organized childcare programs for children enrolled in a private home. The Program authorizes assistance to states through grants-in-aid and other means to assist non-profit food service programs for children and adult participants in non-residential institutions that provide care. It is intended to provide aid to the participants and family or group day care homes to provide nutritious foods for the health and wellness of young children, older adults, and chronically impaired persons.
The indictment alleges that Amy Hernandez would manipulate information in the program's online portal to remove monitoring requirements by marking providers to "inactive" at the start of the month and back to "active" at the end of the money so financial claims could be submitted for reimbursement without any oversight.
The indictment also alleges that the three submitted false and fraudulent claims for reimbrusement, claiming that children were being fed at certain homes when they weren't. Some of the providers they claimed were feeding children were dead when the claims were submitted, the indictment alleges.
Also alleged is that Lenzi Babineaux submitted false and fraudulent state fire marshal inspections for these providers to meet compliance requirements for inclusion in the program - which was necessary to get reimbursement.
The total false and fraudulent claims that the indictment alleges is at least $400,000.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook, the case was investigated by the FBI and the Louisiana State Office of Inspector General and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lauren L. Gardner.
