A former Virginia OB-GYN was sentenced to 59 years in prison Tuesday for performing unnecessary surgeries and procedures on patients.
Dr. Javaid Perwaiz, 71, was found guilty of such practices by U.S. District Judge Rebecca Smith, who presided over his monthslong trial. Perwaiz took advantage of his patients’ trust and used the money earned from the unneeded procedures to fund his lavish lifestyle, prosecutors said.
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A jury convicted Perwaiz of 52 counts of fraud, 23 of which were healthcare fraud and the other 29 for making false statements related to healthcare, according to the Virginian Pilot.
Among the more than 50 witnesses who testified, many were low-income women or those on Medicaid who said they underwent the procedures because they trusted Perwaiz.
Some of the women were persuaded to have their pregnancies induced before it was medically safe, and others were told they had cancer or would have cancer if they didn’t undergo Perwaiz’s recommendations.
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Federal sentencing guidelines suggested Perwaiz get the maximum sentence, which would be 475 years in prison. The recommendation was based on the number of offenses Perwaiz was convicted on, as well as two prior convictions related to filing false tax statements.
