Investigations

On October 20, 2017, Demetri Dearth, former owner and operator of Advanced Substance Abuse Programs (ASAP), Redding, California, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court, Sacramento, California, to mail fraud and false statements to a Government agency in conjunction with the provision of random and pre-employment drug testing services to motor carrier drivers.

 

The investigation revealed that between March 2009 and February 2010, ASAP collected urine specimens from commercial drivers but did not forward many of the specimens to certified laboratories, as the law required. Instead, Dearth created false Custody and Control Forms stating the urine specimens had been released to Federal Express, which would transfer them to a laboratory. In reality, the specimens never left Dearth’s lab. Dearth also falsified reports indicating that a Medical Review Officer (MRO) had reviewed the results of various urine tests when those tests had never occurred. These false reports named legitimate MROs, provided their addresses, and presented forged MRO signatures.