Latest news with #ChantelleLavergneWoods
Epoch Times
06-05-2025
- Epoch Times
California Woman Used Doctors' Credentials to Distribute Pills and Falsify Immigration Documents
A Central California woman pleaded Chantelle Lavergne Woods, 54, of Nipomo, in San Luis Obispo County, pleaded guilty to one count of presentation of false immigration document or application and one count of possession with intent to distribute phendimetrazine, a weight-loss drug, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles. Federal prosecutors claim Woods operated and managed the 'Medical Weight Loss and Immigration Services' clinic in Arroyo Grande, on the coast about 175 miles north of Los Angeles. Starting in February 2021, Woods knowingly misused the identities of three physicians to create hundreds of fake documents used by immigrants to obtain 'green cards' as lawful permanent residents, or to adjust their immigration statuses. Federal law requires that a green card applicant submit proof of a medical examination and a vaccination record to determine if he or she is inadmissible on health-related grounds, the statement said. Prosecutors said Woods completed at least 328 federal forms saying doctors had performed the required examinations, falsely including the signatures of doctors, 'thereby representing that the individual had been medically examined by a doctor, when in fact they had not.' Related Stories 11/5/2024 11/4/2024 'Woods acted without physician authorization, and the clinic did not provide legitimate medical services,' according to prosecutors. As part of the plea agreement, Woods also admitted that she used the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration number of a physician who died in 2021 to order more than 150,000 tablets of controlled substances, including testosterone, codeine, Xanax, diethylpropion, and phentermine. 'In July 2022, at the clinic, Woods knowingly and intentionally possessed with intent to distribute phendimetrazine—a weight-loss drug—as well as a loaded firearm,' the statement said. Woods was 'The fraudulent conduct described in the criminal complaint undermined the integrity of our nation's immigration system,' DEA investigators were first tipped off about the clinic by the San Luis Obispo Sheriff's Office in October 2021 after a probation officer found a bottle of alprazolam, also known as Xanax, in a probationer's purse, according to the The L.A. County federal courthouse on Jan. 11, 2024. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times The label on the bottle of alprazolam indicated that it had been dispensed by a doctor at the clinic owned and operated by Woods. The probationer described the clinic as a 'pill mill,' according to investigators. During that same month, a sheriff's deputy stopped a driver who said he had an appointment at the clinic to apply for a green card, the complaint revealed. The driver allegedly told the deputy he paid $450 to the clinic. When the deputy checked the clinic, there was no doctor onsite, according to the complaint. An undercover DEA agent visited the clinic on Dec. 9, 2021, and was able to buy a controlled weight-loss drug for $200 without a doctor's examination, investigators reported. Later that month, undercover officers also purchased the drug and said they witnessed three people sign immigration paperwork. Woods allegedly maintained a website that advertised a clinic that helped applicants with immigration physicals. The website listed one doctor as a board-certified neurologist and designated civil surgeon for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, but the doctor was a pediatrician and not a neurologist, according to federal prosecutors. According to the criminal complaint Woods officially filed for a business name with San Luis Obispo County in 2019 and signed an agreement with a merchant processing company in 2021 to start accepting payments from customers, according to court documents. Investigators alleged the clinic processed 1,047 sales from June 2021 to March 2022, resulting in payments reaching nearly $290,000. Woods is free on a $10,000 bond while she awaits sentencing by U.S. District Judge Fernando Olguin, set for July 31. She faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison for each count. Woods refused to speak with The Epoch Times when contacted Tuesday about the plea deal.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
SLO County woman admits to falsifying hundreds of immigration forms
The Nipomo woman was convicted Monday of misusing doctor credentials to create hundreds of false medical records for immigrants seeking legal permanent residencies, also known as green cards, and and to purchase and distribute prescribed drugs. Chantelle Lavergne Woods, 54, pleaded guilty to one count of presentation of false immigration document or application and one count of possession with intent to distribute phendimetrazine, an appetite suppressant. Woods ran Medical Weight Loss and Immigration Services in Arroyo Grande from at least February 2021 through July 2022, court records show. At times, there were no physicians present at the clinic, and Woods acted without authorization from a doctor, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office. The clinic also did not provide legitimate medical services. Woods 'knowingly misused' the names and identities of at least three medical doctors — one of whom was deceased — during that time to charge patients to fill out medical immigration forms that contained false information, to acquire controlled substances and to distribute controlled substances, her plea agreement said. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services requires individuals seeking to adjust their immigration status or benefits to complete a medical form, known as Form I-693, to ensure the person is admissible to the country on health-related grounds. The form must be completed by the physician who completes the exam, under penalty of perjury. Woods admitted to fraudulently completing the form for 328 different people — charging each $450 — court documents show. She signed the forms using the identities of three different physicians attesting the individual had been seen by a doctor, which they had not. Woods also used the identity of the doctor who had been deceased to order more than 150,000 of units of controlled substances to her clinic, court documents said. This included about 27,374 units of Schedule III drugs like the appetite suppressant phendimetrazine, testosterone, and pain relievers acetaminophen and codeine, court records said. She also ordered 128,800 units of Schedule IV drugs, including the appetite suppressant diethylpropion, the weight-loss drug phentermine, Xanax, an insomnia medication known as zolpidem and the muscle relaxer carisoprodol. A loaded firearm and phendimetrazine were both found in her clinic in July 2022, court records show. The statutory maximum sentence for each of Woods charges carry 10 years in federal prison, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Her sentencing was scheduled for July 31.
