Federal Prosecutors did not do their job....Really? No surprise...

Why would Federal Prosecutors open a can opf worms that is directly connected to GW Bush's ex-partner, Richard Rainwater of Columbia Homecare Group, (Dallas Ft Worth Homecare) and an exctension of HCA. The crooks in Nashville!
Just look at what they dumped into Medshares, Inc in TN financed by NCFE...
ALL THE LOSERS from the PUBLICLY TRADED companies y of HCA and IHS!!!
National Century fraud case produces 1st acquittal
Prosecutors' case fell short, juror says
Thursday, December 18, 2008 3:29 AM
By Jodi Andes

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The "not guilty" verdicts that came in federal court yesterday were not so much a vindication of the last National Century Financial Enterprises executive to stand trial, a juror said.

Instead, they were more a belief that federal prosecutors had not done their job, the juror said after he and his fellow jurors acquitted James K. Happ of five counts after 12 hours of deliberation.

"He very well may have been guilty. A lot of us thought he was," said the juror who wouldn't give his name. "But if he was, you gotta have the evidence."

Happ, 48, of Dublin, was tried on conspiracy, money-laundering conspiracy and three counts of wire fraud in connection with money advances that he authorized while in charge of purchasing National Century's accounts receivable.

He was the only one of 11 former National Century executives charged in the scam who walked out of the courtroom with a not-guilty verdict.

For Happ, the acquittal was vindication.

"Praise God. He answers prayers," Happ said. "I never believed I had any intent to defraud anyone."

But there was no doubt that fraud had occurred at National Century, the juror said.

The Dublin-based company bought accounts receivable from health-care providers and collected the money owed on them for a fee. Money generated from the sale of bonds to investors provided the funding.

However, investors didn't know that National Century also gave providers millions of dollars without purchasing accounts receivable to back up the loans. That's because a separate set of books hid that and the company's shrinking reserve accounts.

Investors lost $1.9 billion when National Century collapsed in 2002. It's considered to be the largest fraud case by a private company in U.S. history.

Witnesses testified that Happ was part of that deceit. But the witnesses were "tainted," the juror said.

The key witness, Sherry Gibson, had falsified National Century's books herself. Frank Magliochetti, who testified that Happ boasted he could never be prosecuted because he didn't sign anything, bragged about his own ties to organized crime.

Prosecutors should have brought in more witnesses and greater proof to show that Happ had personally been deceitful, the juror said.

Happ's attorneys admitted that he advanced money to health-care companies. But that's simply how National Century did business, his attorneys said, and auditors and banks oversaw company accounts.

They also argued that the advances had been made for eight years before Happ joined the company in 2000.

After leaving National Century, Happ went to work for Tender Loving Care, a client of National Century's that had received close to $100 million in unmerited advances.

TLC later filed for bankruptcy. But Happ, TLC's chief executive officer, oversaw the sale of company assets to repay National Century, the defense noted.

That did not make things right, Assistant U.S. Attorney Doug Squires told the jury.

"If someone takes your wallet and it later is recovered, does that mean that no crime is committed? No, it doesn't," Squires said.

After the verdict, the prosecutorial team of Squires, N. Nathan Dimock and Nicole Sprinzen declined to comment through the office spokesman, Fred Alverson.

"We appreciate the effort of all the (FBI and Internal Revenue Service) agents in preparation of the evidence," Alverson said. "And we respect the jury's decision."

The case was tried in U.S. District Court in Columbus before Judge Algenon L. Marbley.

jandes@dispatch.com