Four Amtrak employees have pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme that defrauded the company’s health care plan of more than $11 million, according to an announcement from Senior Counsel Philip Lamparello.
Timothy Bogen, 60, of Hamden, Connecticut, entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark federal court to conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Quinton Johnson, 54, of Irvington, New Jersey; Gregory Richardson, 36, of Roosevelt, New York; and Dion Jacob, 51, of Brooklyn, New York also pleaded guilty to the same charge before Judge Arleo between June and October 2025.
The indictment included six other former Amtrak employees who had previously admitted guilt: Kevin Frink of Willingboro, New Jersey; Michael Toal of Hazlet, New Jersey; David McBrien of Levittown, Pennsylvania; Damany Walker of Irvington, New Jersey; David Lonergan of Rockaway Park, New York; and Rodolfo Rivera of Clayton, Delaware. Sentences for McBrien, Walker, Frink and Richardson include two years’ federal probation. Sentencing for the others is pending.
Court documents state that from January 2019 through June 2022 the defendants conspired with health care providers to submit fraudulent claims. They allowed their Amtrak health insurance plan to be billed for medical services that were never provided or not medically necessary. In return for their participation in this scheme—which led the Amtrak health care plan to pay over $11 million—the defendants received thousands of dollars in cash kickbacks from providers including acupuncturist Punson Figueroa and podiatrist Michael DeNicola.
Figueroa previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced in September 2024 to nearly three years in prison. DeNicola also pleaded guilty but has yet to be sentenced.
The charge carries a possible penalty of up to ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing dates are set for Bogen on June 25, 2026; Jacob on February 18, 2026; and Johnson on March 24, 2026.
Senior Counsel Lamparello credited special agents from the Amtrak Office of Inspector General (under Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Waters), the Amtrak Police Department (under Chief Sam Dotson), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (under Special Agent in Charge Frank A. Tarentino III) with investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Katherine M. Romano and Jessica R. Ecker represent the government.
Defense attorneys involved are Michael Rubas (for Bogen), John McMahon (for Johnson), Julian Wilsey (for Jacob), and Christopher Adams (for Richardson).
