The Truth Behind One of This Nation’s Biggest False Arrest & Imprisonment Scandals
Date Published: September 11, 2025
1. It is alarming that anyone can be indicted by a grand jury and arrested solely based on the government's allegations that exclude the accused and their counsel from being present or even aware of the accusations.
2. The FBI and U.S. Attorney built their alleged fraud case without ever doing a single required Medicare audit in their five-year investigation.
3. Once arrested, the five other defendants with the same exact charges were immediately released on bond the same day. While I was denied bail and imprisoned for three-and-a-half years awaiting trial—a violation of the 6th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, the right to a speedy trial.
4. Also, the two defendants who accepted a PLEA DEAL in exchange for leniency never spent a single night in prison despite their admission of guilt. I chose to go to trial and was unanimously acquitted by a 12-member jury on all 54 counts, yet still I spent 1301 days in prison.
Dr. Raj Bothra is a surgeon, interventional pain expert, activist, author, and survivor of one of America's biggest false arrest and imprisonment scandals. A native of a rural town in India, he earned medical degrees in India, England, and the U.S. During his time as a surgeon in Detroit, he built a single-owner private practice that became the nation's largest interventional pain management system (The Pain Center, USA, and Interventional Pain Center). He's worked with important public figures, including Indian prime ministers, U.S. presidents, Mother Teresa, and Pope John Paul II. Indian President Narayanan awarded him the high civilian honor of PADMA SHRI and he’s received numerous awards in India and the U.S. for his public service.
Jenifer DeBellis, MFA, is a PhD candidate, transformational speaker, and award-winning author of Warrior Sister, Cut Yourself Free (Library Tales Publishing), New Wilderness (Cornerstone Press), and Blood Sisters (Main Street Rag). She edits Pink Panther Magazine and directs Restore Your Inner Warrior® and Detroit Writers’ Guild (501c3). She's featured in Psychology Today and her writing appears in CALYX, Medical Literary Messenger, The Good Men Project, Solstice, and elsewhere.
