0:00

Chances are that four years ago

0:02

you and everyone else you worked with worked

0:04

in the same place. Three years ago,

0:07

you all worked from home. Today,

0:10

keeping track of everyone and

0:12

everything is a full-time job.

0:15

With work so scattered, you need Monday.com,

0:18

a platform that connects people and their

0:20

tools to clear processes. So

0:23

you can manage projects, sales, dev

0:25

and more all in one place. Learn

0:28

more at Monday.com

0:29

Support

0:32

for Swindled comes from Microdose Gummies. Microdosing

0:36

has changed my life in so

0:38

many different ways. These little

0:40

entry-level doses of THC help

0:42

me sleep better, boosts my creativity,

0:45

and just helps me be more present and manage

0:47

my anxiety and stay more focused. I

0:50

can't tell you how many different products I've

0:52

tried for all of the above, but Microdose

0:55

Gummies are like an all-in-one supplement

0:57

that truly makes a difference. It's not

0:59

going to burn you out or make you groggy.

1:02

Microdose Gummies will help you feel just the

1:04

right amount of good. And I'm confident

1:06

you'll discover even more benefits that I haven't

1:08

even mentioned. So give it a try. Microdose

1:11

is available nationwide. To learn

1:13

more about Microdosing THC, go

1:16

to Microdose.com and use code SWINDLED

1:18

to get free shipping and 30% off

1:20

your first order. Links can be found

1:23

in the show description, but again, that's Microdose.com.

1:26

Code

1:26

SWINDLED.

1:34

This episode of Swindled may contain

1:36

graphic descriptions or audio recordings

1:38

of disturbing events which may not be suitable

1:41

for all audiences. Listener discretion

1:44

is advised.

1:46

I can't read small print.

1:50

I have to use a magnifying glass

1:52

to see. It's like somebody's

1:55

flashing bright lights in my eyes. There's

1:58

times when my eye will burn and hurt. I

2:01

wish I didn't have an idea you'd hurt. 73-year-old

2:05

Louise Hickman had an obstruction

2:07

in her left eye, a cataract maybe.

2:10

Louise said she had to tilt her head and read the

2:12

newspaper at an angle. So

2:15

Louise Hickman went to the Gabrielle

2:17

Eye Institute, closest to her house

2:20

in South Bend, Indiana.

2:22

Dr. Gabrielle told her she needed an eye lift

2:24

procedure to fix her issue. Louise

2:26

was skeptical but trusted the opinion

2:29

of the respected ophthalmologist and

2:31

agreed to the surgery. When

2:33

she returned the next day for a follow-up visit,

2:35

Dr. Gabrielle analyzed his handiwork

2:38

and delivered the bad news. Louise,

2:41

something is wrong, he told her. We're

2:43

going to have to do it again.

2:46

So Louise Hickman had a second surgery,

2:48

which also proved ineffective.

2:50

In fact, Louise described to Dr.

2:52

Gabrielle how her condition had actually

2:55

worsened. Now she had double vision,

2:57

which prevented her from reading any small

2:59

print without a magnifying glass. She

3:01

was also seeing flashing lights on occasion,

3:04

and she could no longer cry out of her left

3:06

eye because of a film that developed around

3:09

it that she constantly had to clear. Dr.

3:11

Gabrielle recommended that Louise see a different

3:14

specialist, and she did. The

3:16

new doctor performed a third operation on

3:18

her eye, only to discover that there was so

3:20

much scar tissue from the previous surgeries

3:23

that a wrinkle had developed in her retina.

3:26

The only solution Louise remembered the doctor

3:28

telling her was to quote, remove the eyeball

3:31

to cut out the wrinkle and put the eyeball

3:33

back in. Louise Hickman

3:35

opted out. She accepted her fate.

3:38

She would just have to live out her remaining years

3:40

with one good eye. A

3:43

few weeks later, a visitor knocked on

3:45

Louise Hickman's door. It was an investigator

3:47

with the Indiana Attorney General's office.

3:50

He had a badge and a medical chart, and

3:52

he asked if he could come inside. The

3:55

investigator explained that an outside doctor

3:57

had reviewed her files and determined that

3:59

she'd never be there. never needed those surgeries. He

4:02

told Louise that she was one of 18,000 cases they were investigating,

4:06

all patients of Dr. Philip Gabriel.

4:09

I'm 73 years old. I

4:13

haven't got that much longer to put up with

4:15

poor vision in my one eye. But

4:19

when I think you might have done this to children,

4:23

I actually cry. Because

4:25

what can they

4:26

do? Dr. Phil Gabriel

4:28

was the founder of the Gabriel Eye

4:31

Institute, an ophthalmology clinic

4:33

with three locations in northeastern Indiana

4:36

near the Michigan border. Philip's

4:38

wife Marcy also worked at the clinic

4:40

behind the scenes. They met in college

4:42

at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.

4:45

They had been inseparable ever since and

4:47

had left a positive impression on their community.

4:51

Phil was nicknamed Doughboy because

4:53

his laugh sounded like the Pillsbury character.

4:56

Marcy was an avid collector of Betty Boop

4:58

memorabilia. Together they were

5:01

award-winning ballroom dancers and massive

5:03

animal lovers. The

5:05

couple did not have children, but they did

5:07

have three Siamese cats whom they adored

5:10

more than anything else on Earth. Their

5:12

names were Lynxie, Chrissy, and Hannah.

5:15

It was a quaint little life that was soon

5:18

turned upside down. On

5:20

May 10, 2007, federal

5:22

agents from the U.S. Department of Health and Human

5:24

Services, along with officials from the

5:27

Indiana Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud

5:29

Control Unit, raided the Gabriel's

5:31

home and clinics at 7.30 a.m. No

5:34

arrests were made, but a significant

5:36

number of documents were seized. The

5:39

investigation plotted along for the next

5:41

two years. The Gabriels felt like

5:44

they were living under the constant threat of indictment.

5:46

At one point they were even offered

5:48

a plea bargain. The Philip pleaded

5:50

guilty. Marcy could walk, the vets promised.

5:53

The couple refused because they maintained

5:56

they had done nothing wrong. So

5:58

on Friday, June 12, 2007, the state was not allowed to be arrested.

5:59

In 2009,

6:00

Philip and Marcella Gabriel

6:03

were formally indicted by a federal grand

6:05

jury charged with 15 counts,

6:07

including healthcare fraud, wire fraud,

6:10

making false statements, and a conspiracy.

6:13

Dr. Gabriel was accused of falsely diagnosing

6:16

patients with visual ailments to

6:18

convince them that surgery was needed. In

6:20

some cases, the patients had no serious

6:23

issues whatsoever. Even

6:25

if they did, Dr. Gabriel wouldn't have

6:27

known, because investigators alleged

6:29

he had failed to perform the most basic diagnostic

6:31

tests and procedures to determine

6:34

if surgery was actually required. There

6:36

were cases where he was replacing patients' perfectly

6:39

healthy lenses with artificial lenses.

6:41

Some of the patients were children. They were all

6:44

billed the same. Marcella

6:46

Gabriel would record false data on

6:48

patients' charts to support these, quote,

6:50

medically necessary procedures. Should

6:53

also alter the results of post-laseic

6:55

surgery vision tests to support

6:57

the clinic's false advertising claims of

7:00

a 100 percent success rate. Not

7:03

true, the Gabriels maintained. They

7:05

released a public statement, quote, where

7:08

deeply saddened and dismayed by

7:10

the government's decision to proceed with an indictment,

7:13

we will continue to focus our energies on

7:15

doing what we love, working tirelessly

7:17

to provide top quality medical care for

7:20

the people of Michiana. The

7:22

Gabriels agreed to turn themselves into authorities

7:25

on the following Monday, June 15, 2009.

7:29

However, when that day arrived, Sue

7:32

Manusak woke up to a voicemail

7:34

from Phil Gabriel. Sue was

7:36

the Gabriels best friend and cat-breeder.

7:39

She was alarmed by what she had heard. On

7:42

the recording, Phil said he and Marcy

7:44

couldn't take any more pain. He said they

7:46

were done fighting. He said that the cats

7:49

were at home and that he and Marcy could be found

7:51

at the Elkhart office. Manusak

7:53

immediately called the police, the Gabriels'

7:56

lawyer and Marcy's brother who had a key

7:58

to the building. convened at

8:00

the Elkhart clinic around 9.20 AM. As

8:03

soon as the door was unlocked, they heard a gunshot,

8:06

the police rushed in. They found

8:08

Dr. Philip Gabrielle's lifeless body

8:10

on the ground, but the single gunshot

8:13

wound to his head.

8:14

Marcy's body was nearby with multiple

8:16

gunshot wounds to the chest. An

8:19

eye doctor and his wife under inductment for performing

8:21

unnecessary surgeries on patients, including

8:23

children, were found shot to death in his Elkhart

8:25

office by police investigating a possible

8:28

suicide attempt. Later that day,

8:30

the local CBS affiliate, WBST,

8:33

received a letter from the Gabrielle's addressed

8:35

to the station's general manager.

8:38

To our patients, families, friends, and

8:40

all the people of Michiana, they began,

8:43

it is clear that our good works here have

8:45

come to an end. The Gabrielle's

8:47

letter included a list of thank yous to

8:49

the lawyers, medical professionals, and

8:51

patients who supported them in the face of a quote,

8:54

unjust indictment, for which there

8:56

was quote, no evidence of criminal

8:58

intent. Continuing

9:01

the fight was not an option for them anymore, the

9:03

Gabrielle's explained in the note. Once

9:06

a criminal indictment was filed against a physician,

9:08

they read, his or her medical career

9:11

is, and all practical senses, finished.

9:13

If we can't provide care, our purpose

9:16

is gone. Another reason

9:18

they were giving up, the Gabrielle's wrote, is

9:20

because they had exhausted all of their resources.

9:24

Sue Manuszak later revealed the couple's

9:26

legal fees had exceeded two and a half million

9:28

dollars. They were having trouble paying

9:30

their bills. We both

9:32

have been blessed with the knowledge of why God put

9:34

us here, that is to help people see.

9:37

Seeing that our medical work in this regard is

9:40

gone,

9:40

our last act hopefully will open

9:42

the eyes of a country to a federal

9:44

legal system that entails far too much power

9:47

to local officials without appropriate oversight.

9:50

Exonerations of doctors has done nothing to change

9:52

this. Hopefully investigation into

9:55

this case may. Regardless,

9:58

we have chosen not to participate in this traffic. any

10:00

longer. In conclusion, we

10:03

wish to thank you all again. We

10:05

are at peace with our decision. The

10:08

following day, employees and patients

10:11

held a vigil at the Gabrielle I

10:13

Institute's Elkhart office, where the bodies

10:15

were found. I think he was innocent,

10:18

Barbara Copeland, till the times of Northwest Indiana.

10:20

I don't care what anybody says, the man's

10:23

just a decent human being. William

10:26

O'Brien, a 90-year-old former

10:28

patient of Dr. Gabrielle's, felt differently.

10:31

O'Brien told the Times he was never informed

10:33

that an infection had developed in his eye

10:36

after surgery at the clinic. He

10:38

knew my eye was infected, but he wasn't

10:40

telling me, O'Brien said. The only

10:42

reason I found out was from the pharmacist when

10:45

picking up the medication Dr. Gabrielle had

10:47

prescribed for me. In response

10:49

to the Gabrielle's taking their own lives, William

10:52

O'Brien had his own theory.

10:54

It probably proves they were guilty,

10:57

and were trying to avoid more personal

10:59

embarrassment.

11:01

The Gabrielle's best friend, Sue Manusak,

11:04

just couldn't believe it. She said the couple

11:06

weren't driven by money. They drove old

11:09

cars, lived in a fixer upper. None

11:11

of it made sense. As for why

11:13

the couple chose to kill themselves at the office,

11:16

Sue assumed it was because of their cats. They

11:19

wouldn't have done anything to upset

11:22

the cats. On July 17,

11:24

2009, the federal judge

11:27

formally dismissed the fraud and conspiracy

11:29

charges against Phil and Marcy Gabrielle,

11:32

since they were dead. The

11:34

charges against the organization remained, and

11:37

in October 2009, the recently

11:39

shuttered Gabrielle Eye Institute pleaded

11:42

guilty to making false statements in

11:44

connection with the delivery and payment of health care

11:46

benefits, and was ordered to pay more than $205,000 in

11:50

restitution. And

11:52

that's how one of Indiana's most sensational

11:55

health care fraud cases concluded,

11:57

with a premature finale and an

11:59

unnecessary

11:59

an established motive.

12:01

I know, I'm disappointed too.

12:04

Luckily for us, at the same time, the

12:07

final act of Indiana's most notorious

12:10

case of health care fraud was just

12:12

beginning to bloom in a tent

12:14

on a mountain

12:15

in a resort town in northwestern Italy.

12:19

A renowned ear, nose, and throat surgeon vanishes

12:22

when multiple accusations of malpractice

12:24

begin to surface on this episode

12:26

of Swindled.

12:54

Support

12:57

for Swindled comes from Simply Safe. There's

12:59

never a wrong time to protect your home, but

13:02

this fall happens to be an especially good

13:04

time because you can get up to 50% off at brand

13:07

new Simply Safe home security system,

13:10

which was named the best home security

13:12

of 2023 by US News and

13:14

World Report. That's why I

13:17

recommend Simply Safe home security and

13:19

their revolutionary home monitoring innovation.

13:22

Simply Safe is comprehensive protection for the

13:24

whole home with advanced sensors

13:26

that detect break-ins, fires, floods, and more,

13:29

plus HD cameras for both inside

13:31

and out. It's powered by 24-7

13:33

professional monitoring for less than $1 a day,

13:36

half the cost of traditional home security.

13:39

With new 24-7 live guard protection

13:42

and a smart alarm wireless indoor camera,

13:44

monitoring agents can see and speak to

13:46

intruders, helping stop crime in

13:48

real time, a powerful technology

13:51

exclusively from

13:52

Simply Safe. Satisfaction

13:54

is backed by Simply Safe's money-back guarantee.

13:57

Try Simply Safe for 60 days risk-free

13:59

if you don't...

13:59

love it, return your system for a full

14:02

refund. For a limited time save

14:04

up to 50% on any new system with a

14:06

fast protect plan. Visit simplysafe.com

14:09

slash swindled. There's no safe like

14:12

SimplySafe.

14:18

He hired street singers

14:21

and it was this really grand

14:24

piazza that was in Rome and he bought

14:26

me a large engagement

14:28

ring from Bulgari and he got down on one

14:31

knee and he proposed.

14:33

Michelle Kramer

14:34

nearly lost a leg when she was 13 years

14:36

old after a drunk driver ran

14:39

her over. Ever since she has been

14:41

infatuated with doctors. They were

14:43

like superheroes without the capes put

14:46

on earth to aid its hapless inhabitants.

14:49

That infatuation formed the basis of Michelle's

14:51

initial attraction to the older man

14:53

in the black satin shirt who had approached her

14:56

at Club Glow in Chicago in 1999. He said his name

14:58

was Mark

15:01

S Weinberger.

15:03

Dr. Mark S Weinberger.

15:05

He was a 36 year old twice

15:07

divorced Ivy League educated

15:09

ear nose and throat specialist who

15:12

was raised in West Chester County New York.

15:14

The son of a physicist, a philosophy

15:17

major who graduated from UCLA's

15:19

David Geffen School of Medicine before

15:21

accepting a prestigious fellowship at the University

15:24

of Illinois at Chicago. His skills

15:26

were unmatched. Dr.

15:28

Weinberger told Michelle Kramer that he still

15:30

lived in Chicago but he had opened his

15:32

own practice a decade earlier in

15:34

Merrillville, Indiana about an hour

15:37

away. It was a calculated decision.

15:40

Northwest Indiana was rife with steel

15:42

mills and oil refineries and

15:44

because of the pollution there were thousands of blue-collar

15:46

workers and nearby residents with sinus

15:49

problems and most of them had union-sponsored

15:51

health insurance.

15:53

Dr. Weinberger was already earning more than 1

15:55

million dollars a year.

15:57

Michelle Kramer wasn't impressed by his wealth.

16:00

She came from a middle-class family, and

16:02

she had her own ambitions. The

16:05

25-year-old graduate student was pursuing a PhD

16:07

in psychology and working as a counselor

16:10

at a Chicago hospital. Mark

16:12

and Michelle had plenty of nerdy things to discuss

16:15

and bond over besides material possessions.

16:18

Within a month of meeting, the couple moved in together.

16:21

They were engaged in less than a year. Mark

16:23

Weinberger had planned an extensive proposal

16:26

in Rome. It always had a thing

16:28

for Italy. In fact, Mark Weinberger

16:31

and Michelle Kramer were planning to get married there,

16:33

but then Michelle's father got cancer.

16:36

The diagnosis was grim, so they moved

16:38

the wedding to Chicago so her father

16:40

could attend.

16:41

Mark Weinberger wasn't happy about the change.

16:44

Michelle told Vanity Fair that her soon-to-be

16:46

husband pushed back, quote, "'You

16:48

can't let dying people change what the living

16:50

are going to do.'" But he relented

16:52

then. The newlyweds eventually had a party in

16:55

Italy anyway for their third

16:57

wedding celebration. Just

17:00

a few months after they married, Michelle Kramer's

17:02

father died. She was paralyzed

17:04

with grief and also disturbed

17:06

by Mark's complete lack of concern.

17:09

"'He didn't really seem to be able to empathize,'

17:12

she told Marie Claire magazine.

17:14

"'It was like he was just going through the motions.'"

17:16

Michelle told the magazine that she rationalized

17:19

his behavior away, telling herself

17:21

he was just a typical self-centered guy.

17:24

Mark was just highly driven, charming

17:26

but dismissive, and blunt yet

17:29

a complete mystery. "'It

17:30

reminds me we were swimming from

17:33

the boat to a beach at one point with our dog,

17:36

and I was struggling, and I felt like I couldn't make it the

17:38

whole way. And he turned around and he looked at

17:40

me and he just kept beelining for the

17:42

shore, and there was no sense

17:44

of he's going to come back and help me. And we were

17:47

married at that point, and I remember thinking,

17:48

who are you?" Dr.

17:51

Mark Weinberger was a local celebrity.

17:54

The interstates in northwest Indiana were plastered

17:57

with billboards for the Weinberger Sinus Clinic.

18:00

He referred to himself in the ads as the nose

18:02

doctor. He had a flashy website

18:04

and a toll-free phone number to his office.

18:07

One eight hundred sinuses. Business

18:09

was booming. In 2002,

18:12

Dr. Weinberger expanded his practice by

18:14

building a state-of-the-art clinic in Merrillville.

18:17

According to his own marketing materials, the

18:19

office quote, defines the cutting edge

18:21

of technology and nose and sinus care.

18:24

Dr. Weinberger spent the last 10 years planning,

18:27

designing, and building the first digitally

18:29

integrated subspecialty clinic dedicated

18:32

exclusively to nose and sinus care.

18:35

All the diagnostic and treatment technology

18:37

is integrated into a single system through

18:39

a customized network and software designed

18:42

by Dr. Weinberger with the goal

18:44

of providing the safest, most effective, and

18:46

most comfortable sinus care anyway.

18:50

Dr. Weinberger was one of the only ear,

18:52

nose, and throat doctors with an in-house CAT

18:54

scan machine. His father, Fred Weinberger,

18:57

had loaned him $1 million to buy it. Marks

19:00

could have easily paid him back. The Weinberger

19:03

Sinus Clinic raked in almost $30 million

19:06

over the next three years, but he

19:08

never did.

19:09

Once he opened a surgery center, things

19:12

exploded financially. It became

19:14

private jets. It

19:16

was like a rap video.

19:18

In November 2002, the Weinberger's

19:21

purchased a $2.4 million five-story

19:24

townhouse condo in the historic

19:26

Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago. There

19:29

was an elevator, but Mark kept a

19:31

laptop and a cell phone in every room because

19:33

he didn't want to waste his time retrieving them. Mark

19:36

Weinberger didn't like wasting time

19:39

at all. Michelle told Vanity Fair

19:41

that when a waitstaff or cashier

19:43

handed her husband a change, he would just

19:45

throw it on the ground. You can imagine

19:47

how he treated the maids, private chefs,

19:50

personal trainers, and massage therapists

19:52

employed, not to mention the attendance

19:54

on the private flight service the Weinberger's

19:56

frequently used or the staff that

19:59

maintained their affordment. million dollar 80-foot

20:01

yacht on which Mark and Michelle would spend 10

20:03

days a month traversing the seas. Sometimes

20:06

they'd go to Europe, other times they'd visit

20:08

the Bahamas where Mark had purchased

20:10

some undeveloped property.

20:12

We had a private jet, we

20:14

had an 80-foot yacht, we had a five-story

20:17

townhouse, a brigade of drivers, 10-day

20:20

trips a month to the Mediterranean or

20:22

the Caribbean, ridiculous shopping sprees.

20:25

We had private drivers, he hired chauffeurs

20:27

and he had a fleet of different cars, Mercedes

20:30

and an SUV and he

20:32

would have his sushi

20:34

lunches even chauffeured out to him

20:38

that were made from one of the best sushi restaurants

20:39

in Chicago.

20:42

Dr. Weinberger also hired a personal chauffeur

20:44

to drive him the hour to his office in Merrillville

20:47

and back. The driver often had to turn around

20:49

immediately and head back to Chicago to

20:51

pick up sushi from Mark's favorite restaurant

20:54

in time for the doctor's lunch. Since

20:56

we're on the topic, Dr. Weinberger would

20:59

reportedly scold his female nurses

21:01

for their meal choices. If they ate

21:03

pizza, he would warn them with disgust

21:05

that they were getting too fat. Mark

21:07

Weinberger also monitored his wife's

21:09

weight. Meanwhile, Michelle

21:11

was still grieving her father and studying for

21:13

exams. Mark was more concerned

21:15

about other things. She said one night

21:18

at a restaurant no less, he handed

21:20

her a pornographic DVD of

21:22

tips on how to give more enthusiastic

21:24

head. It was Mark Weinberger's world.

21:27

Everyone else was just on their knees. Ask

21:29

me how much my hands are worth.

21:30

How much your hands are worth?

21:34

The doctor's ego was a bit out of

21:36

control. Michelle Kramer had to admit,

21:38

but she genuinely loved him.

21:41

I love you baby. I love you baby.

21:43

And admittedly she enjoyed the trappings of

21:45

wealth. Even when it came in the form

21:47

of a $1,000 weekly marital allowance,

21:50

paid in cash on the kitchen counter like

21:52

a high-end escort.

21:59

There's no such thing as a free lunch, as

22:02

they say. But they also say

22:04

life is short, so it's

22:06

entirely okay to enjoy the finer

22:08

things in life. Live deliciously,

22:11

we beg you, but please, consider

22:14

at what expense. More specifically,

22:18

at whose.

22:24

Support for Swindled comes from BetterHelp. Does

22:27

your brain ever get in its own way, like

22:30

the correct answer is obvious, but for

22:32

some reason you just can't make that choice? Perhaps

22:35

you're overthinking it, or talking

22:37

yourself out of it. Maybe you're not trusting

22:39

your gut. Happens to me all the time.

22:42

And you know what helps? Therapy. Therapy

22:45

helps you work for yourself, instead

22:47

of against yourself. If you're thinking

22:50

of starting therapy, give BetterHelp a try. It's

22:52

entirely online, designed to be convenient,

22:55

flexible, and suited to your schedule.

22:58

Just fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with

23:00

a licensed therapist, and switch therapists

23:02

at any time for no additional charge. Learn

23:05

how to develop positive coping skills, how

23:08

to set boundaries, how to empower

23:10

yourself to be the best version of yourself. Make

23:13

your brain your friend with BetterHelp.

23:16

Visit BetterHelp.com slash Swindled

23:18

today to get 10% off your first month.

23:21

That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P dot

23:23

com slash

23:24

Swindled.

23:32

Your first visit to Dr. Weinberger was the beginning

23:34

of September? Well, that would have been about

23:36

September. And

23:38

that was great, because he said, well,

23:41

no problem, that's probably sinuses. And

23:44

he had the Philippine that he

23:46

could put up my nose, just got in the terrain of sinuses,

23:48

and that did help a little bit. And

23:51

plus, I was having a lot of problems,

23:53

money-wise, because I didn't, I

23:55

had very bad insurance. Well,

23:58

let's not go there about it.

24:06

Phyllis Barnes began experiencing

24:08

difficulty breathing and swallowing in

24:11

the summer of

24:12

The 47-year-old lifelong smoker

24:15

had been dealing with a sore throat and hoarseness

24:17

for months. Sometimes she would even cough

24:20

up blood. 6, 2001.

24:28

He performed a CT scan on her right there

24:30

at his impressive facility and found

24:32

that Phyllis's sinuses were crowded with nasal

24:35

polyps.

24:36

Dr. Weinberger recommended endoscopic

24:38

surgery to remove them.

24:40

Phyllis Barnes found relief in the fact that Weinberger

24:43

actually had a plan. The doctor she

24:45

had visited previously thought her issue might

24:47

be allergy related, but it wasn't.

24:50

On October 11, 2001, Dr.

24:53

Mark Weinberger performed a Caldwell luck

24:55

procedure on Phyllis Barnes. Instead

24:57

of the more modern approach of widening

25:00

the sinus passages, Weinberger

25:02

opted to drill new openings in Phyllis's

25:04

skull behind her cheekbones to allow

25:07

the mucus to drain more efficiently. He

25:09

promised her it would provide indescribable

25:12

relief, but it didn't. On

25:14

a follow-up visit, Phyllis Barnes told

25:17

Dr. Weinberger that her problems persisted.

25:20

Dr. Weinberger reportedly dismissed her concerns and

25:22

said she just needed to give the surgery time to

25:24

work. So Phyllis tried that, but

25:27

her condition only worsened. It felt

25:29

like somebody was hanging me by a rope,

25:31

she later said. Phyllis

25:34

worried that she might have pneumonia because she could

25:36

fill it in her lungs now.

25:38

Unfortunately Mark Weinberger was an ear,

25:41

nose, and throat doctor. Not an ear,

25:43

nose, throat, and lungs doctor.

25:45

He suggested she try a different specialist.

25:48

What he told me is he could

25:50

not treat me. And

25:55

I remember that very clearly because I was

25:57

like...

25:59

You're

26:04

my doctor. I mean, what else am I supposed to do? I'm

26:06

sick.

26:09

A few weeks later, in December 2001, Phyllis

26:12

Barnes was gasping for breath at home. Her

26:15

16-year-old daughter, Sean, had to call an ambulance.

26:18

At the hospital, Phyllis learned that sinuses were

26:20

the least of her worries. Doctors found

26:22

a large tumor in her larynx. Phyllis

26:25

Barnes was diagnosed with stage four throat

26:27

cancer, a condition that even the most

26:30

novice ear, nose, and throat doctor should

26:32

have been able to recognize months ago. Unfortunately,

26:36

Dr. Mark Weinberger had not bothered to

26:38

give Phyllis Barnes a throat exam at all. He

26:40

simply ordered a CAT scan on her sinuses and

26:43

immediately recommended surgery within minutes

26:45

of meeting her, nor had he bothered to visit

26:47

her directly after the surgery. Dr. Weinberger

26:50

didn't have time. According

26:52

to Vanity Fair, he reportedly saw more than 100

26:54

patients a day, spending an

26:56

average of three minutes with each of them, even

26:59

though the average ENT exam was supposed

27:01

to last 20 minutes. After

27:03

her diagnosis, Phyllis Barnes had emergency

27:05

surgery to remove her vocal cords and

27:07

voice box. She had additional

27:10

surgeries to get a voice prosthesis. From

27:12

now on, Phyllis would only be able

27:14

to speak through a hole in her neck. I know my voice

27:17

sounds all normal, and

27:20

I don't like to listen to my voice on the internet.

27:25

In October 2002, Phyllis

27:27

Barnes sued Dr. Mark Weinberger

27:29

and her previous doctor for failing to

27:32

diagnose her cancer and carrying

27:34

out an unnecessary operation on her sinuses

27:37

that was paid for by her insurance company. In

27:40

the filings, her lawyer, Kenneth J.

27:42

Allen, wrote, With such obvious

27:44

abnormality, Dr. Weinberger

27:47

would almost have had to intentionally ignore

27:49

this situation in order to have missed

27:51

it as badly as he did. Phyllis

27:53

Barnes realized her days were numbered.

27:56

The lawsuit wasn't for her. It was

27:58

for her daughter, Sean.

27:59

soon to be Orson.

28:01

Shawn's father had died from brain cancer

28:03

just months earlier. What's

28:06

your biggest concern in life? That's

28:08

my daughter. I am

28:10

my only daughter. My daughter's only surviving

28:13

dad. I just want to make sure

28:15

that she drives to school. I

28:17

just want to be able to live and see

28:19

those things happen.

28:22

Phyllis Barnes was not able to see those

28:24

things happen. She died on September 16,

28:28

2004 at age 50. Shawn

28:30

Barnes inherited a small life insurance

28:33

payout and the family mortgage. In

28:35

time, the lawsuit would proceed. And

28:38

that lawsuit bothered Mark Weinberger,

28:41

but probably for all the wrong reasons. In

28:43

the months following, his stress levels shot

28:46

through the roof and it became increasingly

28:48

paranoid. She

28:49

was becoming increasingly

28:52

more bizarre with his behavior. He was

28:55

worried about

28:58

this lawsuit in particular, and

29:00

he was constantly anxious.

29:03

He was very anxious about the whole thing.

29:06

Mark's moods would swing violently and

29:08

rapidly. He started snapping at

29:10

patients and retreating to his office for long

29:13

periods of time, and just overall

29:15

appeared more disheveled. He installed

29:17

video cameras in every room. He asked

29:19

Michelle how she felt about dropping everything

29:22

and moving to an island.

29:24

She thought he was joking. I mean, she

29:26

knew about the Phyllis Barnes lawsuit, but she

29:28

took her husband's word for it that it was nothing. Just

29:31

the result of ambulance chasing lawyers and

29:33

jealous doctors, Mark told her that

29:35

he was being targeted for his success and wealth

29:37

and that he planned to battle it out in court. And

29:40

Michelle believed him. He wasn't a

29:42

lousy doctor, she told Marie Claire. The

29:44

man I married wouldn't hurt people. Oh,

29:48

yes, he would. That's according to the lawyers

29:50

who represented a seemingly endless amount

29:53

of patients whom Dr. Mark Weinberger

29:55

had mistreated. Patients like William

29:57

Boyer, an amateur boxer turned heavy

29:59

at court. equipment operator, who like Phyllis

30:02

Barnes had new holes drilled into his skull.

30:04

The surgery did nothing to alleviate his

30:07

condition. Boyer said he agreed to

30:09

the operation after Weinberger showed him images

30:11

of bloody pus-filled polyps in the sinuses,

30:14

images that were later determined to have

30:16

been completely phony. Patient

30:19

Marzetta Williams of Gary, Indiana

30:21

underwent the same procedure. Weinberger

30:24

blamed her persistent cough on polyps

30:26

at a deviated septum. After

30:28

the surgery proved ineffective, Williams

30:31

saw a different doctor who discovered

30:33

that she was just allergic to dust

30:35

mites and that the operations performed

30:37

on her were utterly unnecessary.

30:41

Dr. Marc Weinberger even performed his unnecessary

30:44

outdated sinus surgery on children

30:46

like 9-year-old Kayla Thomas, even

30:49

though 9-year-olds do not have fully formed

30:51

sinus cavities and rarely do

30:53

they have polyps large enough to require surgery.

30:56

As the trend goes, Kayla's mother took her daughter

30:59

to a different doctor when the condition persisted.

31:02

The other doctor found that Kayla's condition was the

31:04

result of a brain tumor, a brain

31:06

tumor that could not be fully removed because

31:08

of the scar tissue left behind by the

31:11

Weinberger surgery.

31:12

Dr. Marc Weinberger performed hundreds,

31:15

potentially thousands, of completely

31:17

unnecessary sinus surgeries. He

31:20

mutilated people for money, a lawyer

31:22

later said describing Weinberger's

31:24

practice. But to be fair, sometimes

31:27

Dr. Marc Weinberger didn't do anything

31:29

at all. Sometimes he would simply put the

31:31

patient under, let them wake up and then

31:33

bill insurance companies for a list of operations

31:36

that would be physically impossible to complete

31:38

in the appointments allotted time slot.

31:41

And there was no one to stop him. Dr.

31:43

Weinberger was the only surgeon in the building.

31:46

He performed the CAT scans himself. There

31:48

was no separation of duties, no second

31:50

opinions, no one around who would question

31:53

him. According to court documents,

31:55

at least 90% of the patients who came to see

31:57

Maryville's famous nose doc were recommended to be taken

31:59

care of.

31:59

surgery during their very first

32:02

appointment.

32:03

But now Dr. Mark Weinberg's game

32:06

was over.

32:07

He realized that for certain in the

32:09

summer of 2004 when a lawyer

32:11

started requesting patient files,

32:13

it was only a matter of time and the countdown

32:15

had begun. Michelle

32:18

Kramer wasn't privy to the extent of

32:20

Mark's troubles but says in retrospect

32:23

she could feel her husband pulling away. He

32:25

was entirely in his own head and disconnected.

32:28

She said he barely showed any emotion when

32:30

she miscarried after five months of pregnancy.

32:33

But that's also kind of just who he had always

32:35

been and he would do other things to make

32:38

up for his emotional shortcomings.

32:40

For instance he told Michelle he wanted to plan

32:42

a last minute trip to Greece on the yacht

32:45

to celebrate her 30th birthday. He

32:47

told her to invite a few friends and promised

32:49

her an experience that quote, only

32:51

movie stars have. We were

32:53

supposed to stay on our yacht

32:56

and have this huge blowout birthday celebration.

32:59

She was just really excited.

33:00

They set sail on September

33:02

18th 2004, two days after Phyllis

33:04

Arms died.

33:07

They docked in Mykonos on September 23rd.

33:10

Michelle Kramer says she'll never forget that night.

33:12

She said before bed Mark asked her, you

33:15

really do love me don't you? Of course

33:17

I do she replied.

33:19

Then Mark clicked his wedding ring against hers

33:21

as he routinely would and whispered, never

33:23

say bye bye.

33:25

When Michelle woke up at 6am the next

33:27

morning,

33:28

Mark Weinberger was gone. She

33:30

assumed he went for an early morning jog in

33:32

the city. But after a few hours

33:35

she began to worry. She thought maybe he

33:37

had broken an ankle or got hit by a

33:39

car or who knows Michelle

33:40

put on her own running shoes and went

33:42

looking for him. She checked certain shops

33:45

and cafes. There was no sign of

33:47

him. Michelle Kramer returned

33:49

to the dock to yacht and found the ship's captain.

33:52

Oh yeah, I know where Marcus the man assured her.

33:55

He said he was flying to Paris for the day to pick up

33:57

your birthday present.

33:59

How exciting.

33:59

thought.

34:01

But when the sun set and Mark Weinberg

34:03

is still at night returned, she started getting

34:05

that sinking feeling. The

34:07

following day Michelle was able to track down the phone

34:09

number for the Greek cell phone Mark sometimes

34:11

used. She called it from an unfamiliar

34:14

number. Hello but chipper

34:16

voice on the other end answered.

34:18

Mark Michelle asked

34:20

and waited. Silence.

34:24

And then he hung up. It

34:26

was supposed to be like one of the best trips of my life

34:28

and it turned out to be a nightmare.

34:35

Hey, I'm Ryan Reynolds. At Mint Mobile, we

34:37

like to do the opposite of what big wireless

34:40

does. They charge you a lot, we

34:42

charge you a little. So naturally, when

34:44

they announced they'd be raising their prices due to inflation,

34:47

we decided to deflate our prices

34:49

due to not hating you. That's right. We're

34:51

cutting the price of Mint Unlimited from $30 a month to just

34:55

$15 a month. Give it a try at MintMobile.com

34:57

slash switch. New activation and upfront

35:00

payment for three months land required. Taxes and fees extra.

35:02

Additional restrictions

35:02

apply. See MintMobile.com for full terms.

35:06

I knew that

35:08

something was terribly wrong. So I got

35:10

up and I started jogging around the whole island looking for

35:12

him. And everybody kept

35:15

telling me, oh, he just went to go get something for your birthday.

35:18

And as the day progressed, it became really clear

35:20

that he wasn't coming back.

35:23

When Michelle Kramer realized her husband, Dr.

35:25

Mark Weinberger was not coming back. She

35:28

started searching the yacht for clues. Inside

35:31

the safe, Michelle found her passport

35:34

and 1000 euros, which was not even close

35:36

to covering the $40,000 in docking fees. Greek

35:39

officials were saying she owed. The

35:41

boat was seized. Michelle had to

35:44

borrow money from her friends and family to get

35:46

a flight home. Back in

35:48

Chicago, living in the empty condo

35:50

was creepy. Weeks passed

35:52

with no sign of Mark, no explanation.

35:56

After a few months, Michelle Kramer felt compelled

35:58

to defend her missing husband. He

36:00

wasn't around to defend himself. She

36:02

spoke out publicly through the Chicago Tribune.

36:06

He really cared about his patience, Michelle told the

36:08

newspaper. His attitude was that he

36:10

was already convicted. Michelle

36:13

Kramer also used the opportunity to issue

36:15

a plea to Mark. If he would just contact

36:18

me, we can work this out, she said. I

36:20

would do anything to help him. I hope he's safe

36:22

and I still love him. We can relocate.

36:25

We can live on an island in a hut I don't

36:27

care. I don't know if he realizes that.

36:30

It's a nightmare, Michelle continued. I

36:33

hope I wake up and my life goes back to

36:35

the way it was two months ago.

36:38

But it never would.

36:39

There's more time passed. Reality

36:41

began to set in for Michelle Kramer. From

36:44

the information she had gathered, it was obvious

36:46

Mark Weinberger had been planning to do this

36:49

and he was never coming back. Perhaps

36:51

the fact that she found a book he left behind

36:53

called How to Be Invisible was a dead giveaway,

36:55

but she still wanted to know why. Michelle

36:59

went to Mark's office and collected the scraps

37:01

from his paper shredder. She spent three

37:03

days piecing all the documents together. She

37:06

learned he had recently traded cash for diamonds

37:08

up to as much as $1 million. In

37:11

addition, she found a handwritten note of

37:13

the name of a hotel in Paris. Michelle

37:16

also heard about a room at this clinic where

37:18

Mark had been storing dozens of shipments in

37:20

recent months.

37:22

It was obviously camping equipment, backpacks,

37:24

sleeping mats, outdoor cutlery and such.

37:27

Dr. Weinberger's employees had started

37:30

referring to it among themselves as the scary

37:32

room. Dr. Weinberger's employees

37:35

also shared that he had taken over the company's bookkeeping

37:37

in recent months. In retrospect,

37:39

with the consolidated information, it

37:42

was pretty clear that he did not want to be found.

37:45

I really thought that we were going to grow old together

37:47

and, you know, be sipping lemonade on the porch

37:49

with grandchildren. You really was my best

37:51

friend.

37:53

But Michelle Kramer was not giving up and

37:56

she was hot on this trail. Michelle

37:58

had obtained Mark's credit card.

38:00

There were $50,000 in new charges

38:03

for hotels and casinos in Monaco

38:05

and France. She immediately

38:07

hopped on a plane, but when Michelle

38:09

arrived at the hotel in Paris she was informed

38:11

that the man she was looking for had left the

38:14

day before. She had just missed them.

38:16

Michelle Kramer spent her 30th birthday

38:18

alone in Paris before returning home.

38:21

Michelle took a second trip to France a few

38:23

weeks later,

38:24

this time with more anger.

38:26

She told Marie Claire that she bought a wig and

38:28

handcuffs from a sex shop and crawled

38:31

every bar in Paris. If she

38:33

found them she planned a handcuffing to a pole or something

38:35

and called the police. In a crazy

38:38

situation we can either retreat and

38:40

give up or act crazy to survive,

38:42

she told the magazine.

38:44

Again, Mark Weinberger was nowhere

38:46

to be found.

38:49

Kenneth J. Allen, the lawyer representing

38:51

the family of Phyllis Barnes in the malpractice

38:54

lawsuit was assisting in the search.

38:56

He hired a private investigator to follow

38:58

up on reports that Weinberger was in China

39:01

and rumors that he was on his way to Israel, which

39:04

does not extradite American Jews. That

39:06

private investigator came back empty handed.

39:10

Other rumors suggested that the doctor's wife,

39:12

Michelle Kramer, was somehow assisting

39:15

in his escape. Other rumors

39:17

suggested that maybe she'd killed him, but

39:19

that gossip fizzled quickly when people

39:22

realized that Michelle had been victimized

39:24

herself. Mark Weinberger

39:26

had left his wife saddled with $6 million

39:29

in debt and drained their shared checking

39:31

accounts. The house was repossessed

39:33

through foreclosure. His remaining assets

39:35

were eventually auctioned off. Michelle

39:37

filed for bankruptcy and filed

39:40

for divorce. Mark's

39:42

father Fred Weinberger, who had apparently

39:44

lent his son his last million dollars,

39:47

also filed for bankruptcy. Fred

39:49

asked the court-appointed receiver of his son's assets

39:51

to repay the loan plus interest, but

39:53

was denied. Fred

39:56

Weinberger lent Mark the money directly

39:58

and not to his company. Not

40:01

that the company had any assets left either.

40:04

Weinberger had allegedly siphoned $2 million

40:06

from his business, leaving only $7,000 in the checking account.

40:11

The Weinberger Signist Clinic was forced to

40:13

close its doors,

40:14

and over 40 people lost their jobs.

40:17

In absentia, Dr. Mark

40:19

Weinberger's medical license was permanently

40:21

revoked by the state of Indiana in 2005. In

40:25

total, nearly 350 patients

40:27

filed malpractice lawsuits against him,

40:29

alleging that he had performed unnecessary surgeries

40:32

on them. In 2006, Mark

40:34

Weinberger was indicted by a better old

40:37

grand jury for 22 counts of health

40:39

care fraud, for billing the insurance

40:41

companies for procedures never performed. But

40:44

still,

40:45

nobody knew where Mark Weinberger

40:47

was hiding.

40:49

Michelle Prima didn't care anymore.

40:51

She had spread awareness about her missing ex-husband

40:53

on major media programs like The Oprah

40:56

Winfrey Show and Larry King Live. She

40:58

also successfully pushed for the story to

41:00

be covered on America's Most Wanted, but

41:03

then she moved on with her life. Michelle

41:05

resumed her pursuit of a PhD in

41:07

psychology, probably more interested

41:10

than ever.

41:11

She moved to Alabama for an internship to

41:13

work with injured war veterans. Michelle

41:15

spent 12 hours a day with the patients

41:17

that helped put things in perspective.

41:20

Then randomly, on an exceptionally

41:22

cold day of December 2009, Michelle

41:26

received a phone call from a producer at

41:28

America's Most Wanted.

41:29

They told me to sit down,

41:32

that they had some really big news. And

41:34

at that point, I felt like I was punched in the

41:36

stomach. And then I just

41:38

sat down and tears started pouring out of my eyes.

41:41

And I couldn't figure out if there were tears of anger

41:43

or joy. And I called

41:45

my mother and let her know that it was over and that

41:47

he was caught.

41:55

at

42:00

the tiny grocery store where she worked in Cormaire,

42:03

a resort town in northwest Italy at

42:06

the foot of Mont Blanc, the highest peak

42:08

in the Alps. The long-haired

42:10

American, who had shopped there on more

42:12

than one occasion, seemed to share Monica's

42:14

passion for music and outdoor activities.

42:18

Mark Stern told her that he was a divorced Wall

42:20

Street stockbroker who had served his time

42:22

in the rat race and got out as soon as he could

42:24

afford to. He was no longer a slave

42:27

to money. In fact, Mark didn't

42:29

even own a bank account. He paid for

42:31

everything with cash.

42:33

Now, Mark explained to Monica, he

42:35

was living a simple, stress-free

42:37

life. He ended up in Cormaire

42:40

by essentially throwing a dart at a map,

42:42

he said. That's freedom, so

42:45

let's ski. Your girlfriend,

42:47

Monica, she came up here from... Ciao,

42:50

aint? Watch

42:52

the Mont Blanc. Amazing.

42:56

And... Paz.

43:00

Ciao. Ciao. Are you happy? I'm

43:03

happy, baby.

43:05

Mark Stern and Monica Spikonia fell

43:07

in love quickly.

43:08

She felt safe with Mark because he didn't

43:10

even blink an eye when he discovered Monica was transgender.

43:14

And Monica was perfect for him because

43:16

she didn't blink an eye when he told her that he planned

43:18

to live in the mountains by himself in the tent for the

43:20

summer to write a book about survival.

43:24

Of course, he was still Sierra when he hiked into

43:26

town for food or supplies.

43:28

Sometimes Monica would visit Mark at one

43:30

of his three base camps on the mountain. This

43:33

is my little city I started building.

43:36

Yeah. This is base

43:38

camp here. And

43:42

that is the planned expansion

43:44

over there. So

43:46

the city is growing a little.

43:49

After Mark Stern survived the summer, he

43:51

had the urge to stay even longer through

43:54

the fall and into the winter. It

43:56

was exhilarating. But Monica

43:58

soon found out that there was a another explanation.

44:02

On December 10th 2009, Monica's

44:04

spiconius friend sent a link

44:06

to the America's Most Wanted website. There

44:09

was a profile of a wanted man named

44:11

Dr. Mark Weinberger.

44:13

He looked just like her boyfriend Mark

44:15

Stern.

44:17

My whole world collapsed, Monica

44:19

told Vanity Fair. After giving

44:21

it some thoughts, she decided to turn him in.

44:24

It wasn't the first time the local police had heard

44:26

the name. A few months earlier, an

44:28

angry landlord had contacted him because

44:30

Mark Weinberger had stopped paying rent

44:32

on his apartment.

44:34

And as part of the application process, the

44:36

rental company had made a photocopy of the man's

44:38

passport. Mark Weinberger

44:40

had used his real passport. Monica

44:43

confirmed it was the same man and told

44:45

police exactly where they could find him

44:48

on Mont Blanc. After

44:50

waiting out the severe weather, the police set

44:52

off in a snowmobile searching for Mark Weinberger.

44:55

Climbers and mountain guides were happy to point

44:57

them in the right direction of the crazy man

45:00

camping in sub-zero temperatures. When

45:03

they found his camp, the police approached the man

45:05

and asked for identification.

45:07

Mark Weinberger was cooperative.

45:09

He told him he was a 46-year-old divorce

45:11

surgeon who just wanted to live a quiet

45:14

life. He willingly let them

45:16

take him into custody.

45:18

At the police station, Weinberger asked to use the

45:20

bathroom. She sat on the toilet

45:22

in front of an officer standing guard who

45:25

couldn't prevent Weinberger from producing a

45:27

hidden knife and slashing his own throat.

45:30

The expert surgeon narrowly missed his

45:32

own jugular and survived. While

45:34

recovering in the hospital, Weinberger also

45:37

tried pulling a plastic bag over his head to

45:39

end it all but failed. He

45:41

would actually have to face the misery he

45:43

left in his wake.

45:45

And a fugitive doctor from Indiana

45:47

known as the nose doctor

45:49

has been found living in the Italian Alps.

45:52

Dr. Mark Weinberger had been on the run

45:55

for five years. He's accused of actually scheming

45:57

to overbill insurance companies for perceiving

45:59

the case. that were either not needed or

46:02

sometimes they weren't even performed. Police

46:04

say he stabbed himself in the neck when he was arrested.

46:06

He's under medical supervision at the prison

46:08

ward and an Italian hospital right

46:10

now as we speak.

46:12

Mark S. Weinberger was extradited

46:15

to the United States on February 25th 2010. In October 2010

46:20

he pleaded guilty to all 22 health

46:23

care fraud charges against him.

46:25

Damages were estimated at $318,000. Specifically you would

46:27

build private health

46:31

benefit providers for procedures costing

46:34

between 16,740 and 2,600 that were

46:39

not in fact performed on

46:41

various private health benefit customers. Do you

46:43

want me to run through? I understand what

46:46

they're alleging.

46:50

If the judge accepted this plea Weinberger

46:52

would receive a maximum of only four

46:55

years in prison. His victims were

46:57

outraged.

46:58

Such a lenient sentence would be a travesty.

47:01

The judge was still deciding.

47:03

In the meantime

47:04

lawsuits involving almost 350 former

47:07

patients were moving forward. The

47:10

reality is Dr. Weinberger

47:12

was a fraud. He was unnecessarily

47:16

so fraud I should say because Dr.

47:18

Weinberger had a practice where he was making

47:21

up to $200,000 a week with surgery.

47:25

Living on the Gold Coast, commuting with the chauffeur

47:27

driven limousine, jaunting

47:29

in the Mediterranean on his 84th yacht

47:31

with his wife. All

47:34

of that inexplicably,

47:38

inexplicably that greed is what

47:40

caused us to be here today. We're looking

47:42

forward to having Dr. Weinberger held

47:44

accountable for his greed

47:46

for his malpractice for his negligence

47:49

and frankly we want to make sure that not

47:51

only is he held accountable but that this kind of practice

47:54

does not occur anywhere else

47:56

in the United States and that other families

47:59

are not victimized. That's right, greedy

48:01

physicians who have no moral

48:04

codes.

48:05

In March 2011, Phyllis

48:07

Barnes' lawsuit against Weinberger and

48:09

a previous physician assistant was finally

48:12

heard by a jury. The family of Phyllis

48:14

Barnes was seeking millions and medical bills,

48:17

projected lost lifetime earnings, loss

48:19

of affection and motherly love, and

48:21

millions more in punitive damages.

48:24

Kenneth Allen, the lawyer representing the Barnes

48:26

family, argued that Dr. Mark Weinberger

48:29

was responsible for Phyllis' death because

48:31

he missed an obvious diagnosis.

48:33

Had Weinberger done his job,

48:35

Phyllis could have received treatment earlier

48:38

and might still be alive today.

48:40

Weinberger's defense disagreed.

48:42

Phyllis probably would have died anyway, they

48:45

argued.

48:46

Mark Weinberger was deposed for the case, but

48:48

pleaded the fifth 150 times. On

48:51

the advice of counsel, I respectfully decline to answer

48:53

based upon my Fifth Amendment privilege.

48:56

After six days of trial, the jury

48:58

returned to verdict.

48:59

Mark Weinberger was found liable,

49:01

the other defendant was not.

49:04

The Barnes family was awarded $3 million

49:06

in compensatory damages and $10 million

49:09

in punitive damages,

49:10

later reduced to Indiana's statutory

49:13

cap or malpractice suits of one

49:15

and a quarter million dollars and $9 million

49:18

respectively. This is

49:20

what you deserve. You got what you deserve.

49:22

And the reality is, we're

49:25

gonna collect it from you one way or the other, brother. That's

49:28

what I'd say to Mark Weinberger.

49:31

Weinberger's insurance companies were on the hook

49:33

for a small portion of the damages, but they

49:35

tried to fight it.

49:36

The insurance companies claimed they were absolved of their

49:39

obligations since Weinberger fled the country.

49:41

Eventually, a judge would have to decide. Also,

49:44

the state of Indiana would collect a vast portion

49:46

of the punitive damages to fund the Victim

49:48

Compensation Fund, which would help pay

49:50

Weinberger's other victims since his assets

49:53

were depleted long ago.

49:55

For the recording, are

49:57

you Dr. Mark S. Weinberger? Yes.

50:00

Do you have money in any accounts

50:03

anywhere?

50:04

No.

50:06

In other words it would take a while before Sean

50:08

Barnes saw a payout from the verdict but

50:11

the accountability was still sweet.

50:34

Weinberger's victims scored another win a month

50:36

later when the judge rejected the plea deal

50:38

in this criminal case.

50:40

Weinberger earned 27 million dollars over

50:42

three years and was only being charged

50:44

on 22 counts for $318,000. That's

50:48

a rather strong income take for one doctor

50:50

the judge said. Based on that and

50:53

other cases I'm not confident the

50:55

scope of fraud was limited to the 22 counts

50:57

the government investigated.

50:59

The judge also acknowledged the outrage

51:01

of the victims but reminded them that

51:03

it should be settled in a civil setting. This

51:06

case has nothing to do with how good of a doctor

51:08

the defendant was or wasn't he said.

51:10

This is simply an insurance fraud case

51:13

nothing more nothing less. Weinberger

51:16

believes that he's the smartest man in the room and

51:18

today he

51:20

discovered he's not.

51:23

Mark Weinberger agreed to a revised

51:25

plea deal shortly after the captors

51:27

sentence at 10 years instead of four.

51:29

He was sentenced on October 12th 2012.

51:33

For the first time since his capture

51:35

Weinberger spoke in public. I'm

51:38

sorry I lied I stole

51:40

I betrayed a sacred trust

51:42

I have no excuse there is no excuse

51:45

I let so many people down

51:47

my behavior was bizarre it was outrageous

51:50

it was stupid the best I could do

51:52

is spend every minute trying to redeem myself is

51:55

redemption possible

51:57

I don't know but please your honor

51:59

let me

51:59

try.

52:01

Mark Weinberger was sentenced to seven years

52:03

in prison.

52:04

He was released in five.

52:06

Mark was last spotted living in Florida,

52:08

playing with crypto and still calling himself

52:11

a doctor. He was now known as

52:13

the Yoga Doctor.

52:14

Yeah, you and every other weird

52:16

old man at the park.

52:18

For real though, Mark Weinberger is selling

52:20

an online class called Superhero

52:22

Yoga Moves for dorks.

52:24

It costs $197 and will

52:27

help you quote, meet hot chicks and

52:29

look great naked. This is

52:32

not an endorsement by the way. I

52:34

haven't tried it.

52:35

But clearly,

52:36

he is on a new path. Mark

52:39

Weinberger's victims have tried to create new paths

52:41

of their own. In 2013, the bulk of

52:44

the civil lawsuits were settled for a total

52:47

of $66 million, which

52:49

came out to about $195,000 each.

52:53

I guess that's what our dignity is

52:55

worth.

52:56

Now we know. And

52:58

the real victims are not the banks or the insurance

53:01

company that was defrauded. The real victims

53:03

are the people that were harmed.

53:10

Swindled is written, researched, produced,

53:12

and hosted by me, a concerned citizen,

53:14

with original music by Trevor Howard,

53:17

aka Deformer, aka

53:19

The Scary Room.

53:21

For more information about Swindled, you can visit swindledpodcast.com

53:24

and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and

53:27

TikTok, at Swindled Podcast.

53:30

Or you can send us a postcard at P.O. Box 6044, Austin, Texas 78762.

53:32

But please no packages. We do not trust you.

53:38

Swindled is a completely independent production,

53:41

which means no network, no investors,

53:43

no bosses, no shadowy money men, no

53:46

Caldwell Lux. We plan to keep

53:48

it that way, but we need your support. Become

53:51

a valued listener on Patreon, Apple

53:53

Podcasts, or Spotify at

53:55

valuedlistener.com. For

53:58

as little as $5 a month, you will receive early

53:59

access to new episodes and exclusive

54:02

access to bonus episodes that you can't find anywhere

54:04

else and everything is 100% commercial

54:07

free. Become a valued listener at

54:10

valuedlistener.com. Or if

54:12

you want to support the show and need something to wear on your

54:14

trip to Cormier, consider buying

54:16

something you don't need at swindledpodcast.com.

54:19

There are t-shirts, patches,

54:20

hats, hoodies, posters,

54:22

coffee mugs, and more. Swindledpodcast.com.

54:26

And remember to use coupon code capitalism

54:29

to receive 10% off your order. If

54:31

you don't want anything in return for your support,

54:34

you can always simply donate using the form

54:36

on the homepage.

54:38

That's it.

54:39

Thanks for listening.

54:42

My name is Christopher from

54:44

Durham, North Carolina. My name is

54:47

Oscar from Indiana. My name

54:49

is Ohio Furfur and

54:52

you might have guessed I am from

54:55

Ohio and I'm a very concerned

54:58

person and a valued good man.

55:03

I just bring on the

55:06

corrupt

55:06

MFers. I just

55:09

had it with them and love the

55:11

way you bring them out to our attention.

55:14

Have a good summer. Bye.

55:39

There's a reason Bowling Green State University

55:42

is ranked number one in Ohio for student

55:44

experience. Our in-demand degrees

55:46

and life design program prepare students

55:48

for their first career and their next. With

55:51

an unparalleled support system at a national

55:53

research university, BGSU

55:55

offers an unrivaled experience. All

55:58

on a vibrant campus in one of America's most beautiful cities.

55:59

It's

56:02

also why Bowling Green State University

56:04

is the number one school in the Midwest that students

56:06

would choose again for the fourth year

56:08

in a row.