SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah doctor, as well as two of his employees and his neighbor, were charged federally for allegedly running a fraudulent COVID-19 vaccination card scheme, destroying legitimate vaccine doses and administering saline shots to minors.
Dr. Michael Kirk Moore Jr., 58, as well as Kari Dee Burgoyne, 52, Kristin Jackson Andersen, 59, and Sandra Flores, 31, were charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to convert, sell, convey, and dispose of government property; and conversion, sale, conveyance, and disposal of government property and aiding and abetting.
Moore is a plastic surgeon who owned and operated "Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah," located in Midvale.
Court documents detail that Burgoyne was the office manager for the business, Flores worked as a receptionist and Andersen was Moore's neighbor.
Officials report the group destroyed at least $28,028.50 worth of legitimate COVID-19 vaccines and distributed at least 1,937 fake COVID-19 vaccination record cards.
In addition, the defendants are also accused of giving saline shots to minors at the request of their parents so that the children would believe they were receiving an actual COVID-19 vaccine, officials report.
In October 2021, Moore began receiving COVID-19 doses and vaccination cards from the government after filling out a CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Program Provide Agreement, meaning that his business would administer vaccines, court documents explain.
Shortly after receiving the vaccines and cards, Moore and Burgoyne allegedly began to distribute the vaccine record cards without administering a vaccine, documents report.
According to an indictment, they would also allegedly destroy the real COVID-19 vaccine doses by squirting them down the drain using a syringe.
After some time, Moore and Burgoyne set up a screening mechanism for the fake vaccine card seekers and would refer people to Andersen for screening purposes.
"Andersen would then screen the purported Fraudulent Vax Card Seekers by requiring them to provide her with the name of another Fraudulent Vax Card Seeker who had already received a COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card from the Plastic Surge1y Institute without actually receiving a COVID-19 vaccine," court documents state.
If an individual passed "screening" they would then be required to make a $50 donation for each appointment to get a fake vaccination card. The "donations" were made to a "charitable organization" that was linked back to the plastic surgery business, documents report.
Flores and "other employees" would provide the individuals with completed COVID-19 vaccine record cards even though they had not been administered any doses of the vaccine.
In addition, the defendants are also accused of sometimes administering saline shots to minors "at the request of their parents so that the minor children would think they were actually receiving a COVID-19 vaccine," documents report.
The defendants are scheduled to make their first court appearance on January 26.
