DENVER—The owner of a Colorado-based rural health brokerage facing federal money laundering and embezzlement charges has been arrested.
A federal grand jury indicted 59-year-old Gerald Rising Jr. on charges of mail fraud, embezzlement and 18 counts of money laundering. He was arrested Wednesday.
His company acted as a third-party administrator for small nonprofits and private companies. His clients included school districts and town administrations in Colorado, Kansas and Oklahoma.
Rising is accused of mixing trust funds from clients in violation of the trust agreement and of falsely saying his Rural Health Plans Initiative had paid claims.
He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines if convicted.
Rising’s attorney Gregory Goldberg said Wednesday that Rising has cooperated with authorities throughout their investigation and is presumed to be innocent.
