MIAMI – A retired City of Hialeah firefighter with 20 yrs of working experience has been arrested following getting accused of the alleged sale of American Coronary heart Affiliation (AHA) certifications without having coaching the recipients.
On Friday, Miami-Dade State Legal professional Katherine Fernandez Rundle and Miami-Dade Law enforcement Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez III introduced the arrest of 60-calendar year-old Carlos Ernesto Rojas.
“Falsification of any certification usually has the opportunity of putting people today in danger. Nonetheless,
falsifications of teaching in everyday living-preserving techniques produces an clear chance if a lifestyle-or-dying condition occurs,
one thing these certifications have been intended to stay away from” mentioned State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.
“I applaud the operate of the Miami-Dade Police Office in ending this almost invisible hazard and know that
my prosecutors will swiftly provide this scenario ahead of the judges of our felony courts.”
Jackson Well being Procedure produced the following assertion: “We applaud the swift action of the Jackson workforce who claimed this fraud. Our healthcare experts acknowledge the significance of appropriate CPR training and the actual get the job done that prepares them to conserve life.”
Authorities explained Rojas possessed AHA teacher certifications in Simple Life Guidance (BLS), Innovative Cardiovascular Lifetime Guidance (ACLS) and Pediatric Advance Lifetime Help (Buddies) which authorized him to instruct those classes.
Rojas has been billed with 1 count of Organized Plan to Defraud, which is a 3rd-degree felony.
In this article is what officials explained about the investigation, which started in 2021:
“Soon after 14 people who were offered work or advertising by Jackson Health Techniques contacted Rojas in search of BLS and/or ACLS teaching. These men and women allege that they paid out Rojas a whole of $1,140.00 for the necessary classes. They predicted to acquire schooling, but no education occurred. In its place, these persons allegedly been given electronic documents (eCards) from Rojas indicating that they participated in or properly accomplished a training course.”
Officials mentioned an undercover officer received BLS certification with no any education from Rojas for $60, transmitted by way of digital revenue transfer.
“Next the money exchange, the AHA sent an email to the undercover officer congratulating him/her for finishing the AHA instruction and offering instructions on how to claim his eCard.”
Prosecutors stated, “The AHA could not have recognised the identity of the undercover officer nor how to contact him with out Rojas owning furnished the course completion data to AHA. The undercover officer did not participate in or successfully entire any cognitive and/or skill evaluations as expected by the curriculum of the AHA to receive the AHA certificates. Documentation offered by the AHA confirmed that involving January 1, 2020
and December 1, 2021, Rojas allegedly issued more than 14,500 certificates on behalf of the AHA. At $60 for every
card, Rojas allegedly could have taken in in excess of $870,000 during that time interval.”
More charges could be forthcoming in this case, prosecutors mentioned.
