FBI Probes $1.48M Autism Therapy Bill as Fake Sony Exec Gets 78 Months

Federal investigations into out-of-network healthcare billing practices and a 78-month federal prison sentence in a $1.2 million music-industry impersonation scheme anchored legal and financial enforcement reporting on November 7, 2026.

FBI and House Panel Investigate Autism Therapy Provider After $1.48 Million Family Bill

The Federal Bureau of Investigation's Pittsburgh field office and the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce have opened inquiries into multi-state Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy provider The Perfect Child, led by executive director Simcha Bendet, after families across multiple states reported six- and seven-figure out-of-network billing statements. In Tennessee, the Messier family received bills totaling $1.48 million after the provider charged $10,000 for each 3-hour therapy session—reaching $20,000 per day—and sought to collect out-of-network insurance reimbursement checks mailed directly to policyholders.

Additional families reported parallel billing disputes: the Elkins family received statements exceeding $364,000 after initially being quoted an estimated out-of-pocket cost of $102 per month, while New Jersey resident Carolina Lopez was billed $911,400—a sum that included a $30,500 charge for a single 70-minute intake evaluation.

The federal probe comes as national spending on ABA therapy rose from $2 billion in 2021 to $10 billion in 2025, with Medicaid and CHIP expenditures on ABA services climbing 421% over the same period. In response to rapid billing growth, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published a 173-page payment-integrity toolkit for state regulators in August 2026, following an enforcement action on July 2, 2026 in which Connecticut Attorney General William Tong secured a $710,815.34 settlement resolving improper ABA billing allegations in that state.

Imposter Sony Music Latin Executive Sentenced to 78 Months for $1.2M Concert Promoter Fraud

In Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods sentenced Meceo Ray McEaddy to 78 months (6.5 years) in federal prison followed by 3 years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $1.2 million in restitution after he pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Prosecutors detailed how McEaddy—who began the scheme shortly after his 2017 release from prison for a prior fraud conviction and was indicted in May 2025—impersonated a senior executive at Sony Music Latin using spoofed email domains and fabricated booking contracts to collect advance artist deposits from 20 concert promoters for performances that were never authorized. Federal prosecutors had recommended a 7-year sentence while defense attorneys requested 3 years before Judge Woods imposed the 78-month term.