The Dheo Medical Practice, housed in the Charlesville Medical Clinic, a family medical practice, provides routine checkups, health-maintenance, immunizations, and minor outpatient medical procedures. Doctors Ron and James Dheo, twin brothers, started this medical practice fifteen years ago. The medical office is located at 22 Academic Avenue, Charlesville, New Jersey. On October 31, 2020, Wendy Osborne, the office manager, arrived at the office at 7:30 am, as she has done for the last fifteen years. As she walked from her car to the office, she noticed tire tracks in the grass, resulting in damage to the lawn. When she approached the office door, she noticed the glass on the front door entrance was shattered. She looked down and saw glass on the ground. "Not another burglary," she thought to herself. "Hello, hello, Doctor Ron, Doctor Jim, are you in here?" she spoke through the broken glass. Osborne heard no response and felt scared. Before entering the office, she reached for her phone and called 911. "911, what's your emergency?" "I just arrived at work, and it looks like we had another break-in. Can you send an officer, please?" As she spoke, Osborne pushed the door open and walked toward the reception area. She observed a crowbar and mud on the floor. "Doctor Ron, Doctor Jim, is anyone here?" she loudly asked. She then walked to Examination Room#1. At 7:36 am, on October 31, 2020, the 911 recording captured the following: "Ma'am, what's your address, so I can send a patrol car." "Oh my, Oh my God! Doctor, doctor, Ron, no. There's . . . blood, blood. He's, I think he's dead...Doctor Ron, no! Please help, please ... Help! Detective Ben Dulle arrived at the scene by 10:00 am. As a twenty-year detective with the Charlesville Police Department, his education, training, and experience told him he was at a crime scene, and the crime was homicide. Detective Dull made the following observations in his notebook: -Tire tracks outside office. Motorcycles, not cars. 7-10 motorcycles. (Investigative Step #1) Traveling west toward Interstate 9. -Glassdoor damaged; likely pried open with a crowbar (Investigative Steps #2 and #3) -CCTV camera above door. Check hard drive for video (Investigative Step #4) -Inside medical practice. Multiple assailants. Bloody boot tracks to and from the reception area and Exam Room#1 (Investigative Step #5) -Behind reception area. Four file drawers containing medical records located against the back wall behind the reception window (Investigative Step #6) -Decedent. Male. Around 55 years old. Wearing white medical jacket, blue jeans, black golf shirt. Head mirror on the decedent's head and stethoscope around neck. Location: Exam Room#1. Lying face down on floor, feet toward sink; head toward examination table. -Multiple blows to head and body. Crowbar lying in the reception area by doorway. (Investigative step #7); one gunshot wound to the head; entrance wound to back of head. -Several medical files on the floor in Exam Room#1 and reception area (Investigative Step #8) Ten motorcycles drive into an abandoned rock quarry on the outskirts of Charlesville in the early morning of November 1, 2020. The men turned off their engines and huddled together. Once there was silence, a man stepped forwarded. He wore a leather jacket with the words "C-V Knights" written on the back. On his shoulder was a patch that read: "Boss." He then spoke: "We continue doing what we have been doing. We had to take out that doctor. He was going to go to the feds. I spoke with his brother. He will keep his mouth shut. He knows what happens when you cross the C-V Knights. We keep bringing them the Phantoms. We keep getting paid. When Doctor Jim is interviewed by the dumb police, he will tell them that his brother got addicted to oxy and had a run-in with some junkies. He knows nothing. That's what he will tell the police. I guarantee itor he will get his head split open with a crowbar." The man with the Boss patch then held up his right hand and the group immediately went silent. "We have something else to deal with. Brother Merle, step forward," he said. From the darkness, another man walked forward and responded, "Yes, Brother Jinx," referring to the Boss. Jinx spoke, "Now, I want you to serve as an example to the rest of us. Merle, you were on the doctor job?" Merle responded, "Of course, Boss." Jinx continued, "Before you left, we talked about how we would take care of our business. Like professionals. Like the bandits we are?" "Yes, that's right man," Merle replied. "And we talked about how we would beat the doctor's head in and send a message?" Merle, "Yes, sir!" Jinx, "We do everything to protect the C-V Knights and our biz?" Before responding, Merle started to get excited. He was the one that inflicted the deadly blows on Doctor Ron and fired the final shot. He was still not an official member of the C-V Knights. This kill, he knew, would give him status and make him official. Merle then responded, "Yeah man, you know it! I fired the final shot." Jinx then spoke, "I want all of you to learn from Brother Merle. He is an excellent example of how we take care of business. I want everyone to give him a round of applause." As the group clapped, without warning, Jinx punched Merle in his face, breaking his jaw and knocking him to the ground. Jinx then screamed: "You idiot! Where's your crowbar?" Merle, who was holding his jaw and unable to speak, knew what was coming next. He knew he left his crowbar in front of the reception area. It was a rookie mistake, he thought. Jinx continued yelling, "You left it at the crime scene - with your DNA and prints on it! Maybe our DNA and prints. Really?!? Are you intentionally trying to get us all pinched, or are you just that dumb?" Jinx crouched next to Merle and spoke to him in a reassuring voice. "Have you learned your lesson? You won't every do anything like that ever again, will you?" Merle frantically shook his head in agreement. Jinx then made a "thumbs up" sign with his right hand. A handgun came out from the group of men. The shot echoed in the dead of night. Merle fell to the ground, dead. Federal Agents seek a proffer30 from Ms. Wendy Osbourne. On November 9, 2020, Wendy Osborne, her attorney, you, your partner Detective Dulle31 a Special Agent from the FBI, and an Assistant U.S. Attorney (a federal prosecutor), met in a hotel room on the outskirts of Charlesville, New Jersey.32 The federal prosecutor started the conversation: "Ms. Osborne, I am a federal prosecutor. I appreciate you meeting with us today. Before we start, I want to review some ground rules. Please do not say anything yet, just listen for now, okay? First, you are innocent until proven guilty, and you have an absolute right to jury trial. A jury might find you guilty or not guilty. But you have that constitutional right. Now you should know, based on the current information presented to me, you were part of an extensive health care fraud scheme. You and others made claims for health care payments that you knew were fraudulent. These claims were for medical services not provided to patients. This scheme, in which your participated, defrauded health care companies, including the government's Medicaid and Medicare programs, out of millions of dollars. That is a serious federal crime. These claims were for medical services that were never provided to patients. This scheme, in which your participated, defrauded health care companies, including the government's Medicaid and Medicare programs, out of millions of dollars." Ms. Osborne interrupted, "Yes, I did. I am terribly sorry." Her attorney stated, "Ms. Osborne, that's why we're here. Like we discussed in my office. You are here to fully cooperate. To tell the truth. We will get through this difficult time." The prosecutor continued: "Before we start, I want to review the document in front of you. We call it a 'Proffer Agreement.' It is a legally binding contract between the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey and you. Any time we make you a promise, it will be in writing - just like this one. Here's what the Agreement says: First, anything you say during this interview cannot be used against you. For example, if you tell us that you committed health care fraud, the government would be unable to use the statements you make today against you if your case goes to trial. Now, this document is not immunity and does not mean you can't or won't be prosecuted. I want to be clear: we intend to proceed with a criminal case against you. If your case goes to trial, the governmentthat's me, the prosecutor--would be able to introduce other evidence against you, including the admissions you previously made to law enforcement on October 31, 2020. But the statements you make today are protected. Second, if you say anything today that is false, you could be prosecuted for making a false statement to the government. That is a federal crime. More importantly, you should know, if lie to us during any interview, then that means that we can't trust you, and if we can't trust you, then you cannot cooperate with us. You'll see why that's important when we talk about the 5k1.1 letter that I am sure your attorney told you about. Do you understand everything in this document?" "I do" replied Ms. Osborne, as she signed the document. Her attorney then spoke to the group: "Ms. Osborne and I spoke in my office. Ms. Osborne is fully committed to owning up to what she did. She recognizes that she broke the law. She intends to plead guilty, and she hopes to receive a sentencing reduction through cooperation. But she was not the leader of the scheme. She acted at the direction of the two doctors. She is a single mother, and this job paid her a good salary. I do not mean to make excuses for her conduct, but you should understand that she is a 'small fish' here. She will tell you everything she knows. How the scheme worked. Who was involved, and how the doctors engaged in fraud and money laundering. She will fully cooperate and expects to earn a 5K for her substantial assistance. She knows cooperation is her best option."33 The Federal Prosecutor continued: "Yes, thank you. We'll discuss cooperation. But before we do, I want to discuss the process. Cooperation is a two street. Here's how it works. First, you need to accept responsibility for your role in the crime. You will need to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud. You will need to sign a plea agreement. The plea agreement will set forth the crime to which you will plead guilty, the maximum penalties, and all the other consequences that result from waiving your rights to a jury trial and entering a guilty plea. This plea will happen later. But first, let's discuss your cooperation." On November 16, 2020, you Detective Dulle and the Special Agent meet Wendy Osborne in a parking lot behind a supermarket. She entered their car, and the Agent started: "Like we discussed, you will meet with Doctor Jim Dheo and have a conversation with him. Let him speak. We need to know what he knows about his brother's murder. What he knows and how he knows it. Does he know who did it? Is he afraid for his own safety? We also want to know about the health care billing and whether the murder and fraud are connected. Take this and put it in your purse, it's a recording device. We will be close by and listening in. " ater that day, on November 16, 2020, Wendy Osborne met with Doctor Jim Dheo at the medical office. The following is a summary of the covert recording made by Wendy Osborne. "Doctor, can I speak with you, in private?" After they walked into a small conference room, Wendy Osborne spoke: "Doctor, I am scared. This detective showed up at my house with an FBI agent. The FBI is involved! I told them I was heartbroken about Doctor Ron, but I told them I don't know anything about your brother's murder. Which is 100 percent true. The FBI agents then caught me off guard and said he knew about "the millions of dollars in fraud"--those were his exact words. I told him I did not know what he was talking about, but I'm not a good liar. . . .I don't know anything about your brother's murder. Doctor Jim Dheo cut her off and with a hushed voice and said, "You can't tell them about the billing. What we have been doing here is racketeering. We'll all go to jail. For a very long time. I mean, like federal jail or prison or whatever. I mean the can. And that's just the fraud. God forbid they look at the money trail . . . we are all in trouble." Wendy Osborne interjected, "We? We? . . . " "I'm sorry, you are right. This whole thing was my idea. But I guess I can blame my brother because they can't put a dead man in jail?," he replied. "James, that's probably not the wisest strategy. It will be easy for them to figure out. Right?" she asked. He paused for a moment and then said: "Oh my, yes. You are too right. You are too right. I am 50% owner of the vitamin business and my signatures are all over the patient files for patients I never saw. Ugh. If they figure out, we have been billing for the phantom patients ... All they need to do is look at the claims and our medical records ... The red and green patient files can bury us, and like good! Our patient files will provide the FBI with a roadmap on how to prosecute us. It's a no-brainer for the feds. We have just given them a federal case with a bow on it. Ugh. We should get rid of those files, just burn them, or shred them. I can dump them in the ocean." She responded: "But doctor, won't that make it worse? They will get the medical claims from the insurance companies and then ask for the patient files, and we will have none! We are required to keep those files by law. How do we explain that we billed the insurance companies and the government millions of dollars and it just so happens all those files are missing? That will make us look even more guilty. And don't forget the stupid Red and Green Accounts. I told you not to do that. Those records are with the bank. There's nothing we can do about that." "You're right, we . . . I am totally screwed either way. I am knee-deep in health care fraud and got caught with my hand in the cookie jar," he replied. . . . "By the way doctor, who are these phantom patients?" she asked. The doctor replied: "You can't say anything, but every week or so, I meet some guys. Actually, some pretty rough guys. They are part of a motorcycle gang. They call themselves the C-V Knights. They would give us--Ron and me--the patient information. The patients are real people. The motorcycle folks pay them $100 bucks or so for the information, including their health insurance information, and will bill it. I have no idea who these patients are, but the money... Remember those payroll checks that you kept on asking about, well, those payroll checks are for the motorcycle gang. That's how we get the money back to them and make it look on the up and up. I mean, it's all fugazi, but whatever, I ain't crossing them. I also give cash to the motorcycle gang leader once a month, depending on how much is transferred to the vitamin company. I made a massive mistake. I knew I should have never billed for fake patients. It's a fraud. I will go to jail and lose my medical license!" "Doctor, did these motorcycle people have anything to do with your brother's ... murder?" Wendy Osborne asked. The doctor stated: Yes, he wanted out and threatened to go to the feds. He just wanted to retire. He wouldn't say anything. I told Jinx that. Jinx assured me they would just talk to Ron, and now he's dead. "Who's this ... Jinx?" she asked. He responded: "The leader of this motorcycle gang. He's a crazy man. A dangerous, unpredictable, insane, violent pyscho. And a stone-cold killer. That's why I kept him away from the medical practice. It's all my fault. I should have never got involved with these bikers. I should have never got involved in this fraud." Wendy Osborne asked, "Are you sure he killed your brother?" He responded: "Yes, Jinx told me he and his gang did it. He made me look at photos of my dead brother on his phone. He was bragging and said I would be next if I opened my mouth."

• What evidence of the crime would you expect to find in this location?
  • list these items (at least 3)
  • what would be expected to find each of these items in the location
  • These items do NOT include items that have previously been recovered from the crime scene, i.e. the victim, the crowbar.

• List the items you expect to find (below) and explain why you think each item would be in this location. Enter information from the crimes that supports your assertion that evidence of the crime would be in the location you hope to search. Review the crime scene and summarize the information here.