From The Associated Press, April 6, 2011 - 09:09 AM 

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/market_news/article.jsp?content=D9ME6BQG0

DENVER (AP) - The owner of a Colorado-based rural health brokerage who had school districts and town administrations as clients faces charges of mail fraud, embezzlement and money laundering.

Gerald Rising Jr., 59, was indicted by a federal grand jury Monday, the U.S. attorney's office in Denver said. A warrant was issued for his arrest, and his first court appearance is scheduled Wednesday.

Rising, who lives in suburban Denver, is accused of mixing trust funds from clients in violation of the trust agreement, and of saying his Rural Health Plans Initiative had paid claims when it hadn't. He also directed employees to send balance statements to plan participants that falsely represented their account balances, according to the indictment.

A phone number listed for Rising in Centennial has been disconnected.

The Denver Post reported that Rising represented his company as a third-party administrator for small nonprofits and private companies. He signed up school districts, nursing companies and town administrations in Colorado, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Rising also created a company in the British West Indies to avoid oversight by Colorado regulators, authorities said.

If convicted, Rising faces up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $500,000 for each of the 18 counts of money laundering.