A federal judge today sentenced Robert A. Urciuoli, the former president of Roger Williams Medical Center, to three years in federal prison for corruptly employing former Rhode Island Senator John Celona to advance the Medical Center’s interests in the General Assembly.
United States Attorney Robert Clark Corrente announced the sentence, which Chief U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi imposed in U.S. District Court, Providence. Judge Lisi also fined Urciuoli $30,000 and ordered him to perform eight hours a week of community service during two years of court supervision following his release from prison.
In October, a federal jury found Urciuoli guilty of conspiracy and 35 counts of mail fraud. During the trial, First Assistant U.S. Attorneys Luis M. Matos and Assistant U.S. Attorney Dulce Donovan presented evidence that Urciuoli hired Celona in 1998, ostensibly to work for the Village at Elmhurst, an assisted living center affiliated with Roger Williams. The evidence showed, however, that Urciuoli actually hired Celona to advance the Medical Center’s political agenda and by doing so, deprived the citizens of Rhode Island of their right to Celona’s honest services.
Between 1998 and 2004, Roger Williams paid Celona approximately $260,000 in consultant fees and, in return, Celona took steps to kill bills deemed harmful to Roger Williams and to advance legislation that Urciuoli considered favorable.
Celona worked to kill legislation that would have prohibited Medical Center officials from serving on the board of a for-profit hospital in the event of a merger. Celona also helped Urciuoli pressure medical insurance companies to increase their reimbursements to Roger Williams for health care services.
The trial in October was the second one stemming from a 2006 indictment. Convictions in October 2006 were reversed by the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on an issue of how broadly to define the scope of honest services.
In September 2005, Celona pleaded guilty to federal fraud charges. He recently completed a 30-month prison sentence.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Rhode Island State Police conducted the investigation.