How doctor dubbed 'the worst fraudster in American history' was turned in by his employee: Office manager told Feds his boss was falsely diagnosing cancer and forcing patients into bankruptcy

• Office manager George Karadsheh ran Dr Farid Fata's cancer center
• He asked doctors why they were resigning and discovered the conspiracy
• Took the case to the US Justice Department - and Fata was arrested  
• Fata gave 533 patients excessive and grueling cancer treatments
• He then billed insurance firms, scamming millions of dollars in the process
• Victims, some of whom did not actually have cancer, had health wrecked
• Sustained brittle bones and fried organs, with one losing both of his legs 
• On Friday, Fata broke down in court as he was imprisoned for 45 years 

By Mia De Graaf and Sophie Jane Evans For Dailymail.com

Published: 10:57 EST, 11 July 2015 | Updated: 21:45 EST, 11 July 2015

An office manager has revealed how he exposed his doctor boss for putting hundreds of people through unnecessary and grueling cancer treatments in order to net millions of dollars. 

George Karadsheh said his suspicions were aroused by the unusually large number of workers handing in their resignations at Dr Farid Fata's Crittenton Cancer Center in suburban Detroit.

Karadsheh probed a number of outgoing medics, who told him they suspected chemotherapy was being given to patients who had not been diagnosed with cancer.

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Jailed for 45 years: Detroit-based Dr Farid Fata, who put 550 patients through unnecessary treatments

After investigating the case himself, Karadsheh felt he had enough evidence to go to the US Justice Department in 2013. In August that year, Fata was arrested. 

Yesterday the 50-year-old doctor was jailed for 45 years for poisoning around 550 victims - many of whom did not actually have cancer. He gave them chemotherapy and other treatments they didn't need, then billed their insurers.

His actions wrecked his patients' health, with many sustaining chronic illnesses such as brittle bones and fried organs. Others lost their jobs and their homes and were forced into bankruptcy. 

'It was so difficult to believe,' Karadsheh told ABC's Nightline. 'Here is a physician whose background is second to none in Michigan. I had never had a patient complain that there was a problem with a reaction to a drug or whether it was necessary.'

Emotional: Geraldine Parkin, 54, of Davison, Michigan, whose husband, Tim, is still alive after being over-treated by Dr. Fata, hugs Cheryl Blades (center), of Waterford, whose mother, Nancy LaFrance, died of lung cancer. Blades' daughter Jessica, 25, is also pictured, after yesterday's sentencing hearing

Pat Steinhelper, 77 (right) of holds a picture of her husband, Jerry Steinhelper, who died due to complications of chemotherapy at the hands of Dr. Fata

The case came to light, he said, when he spoke to an accomplished doctor to ask why he handed in his resignation. The doctor 'explained that Dr Fata was actually administering chemotherapy to patients without need', Karadsheh said.

'He was also explaining that patients who were on hospice were taken off hospice and put on chemotherapy, put back on chemotherapy.

'He also pointed out that patients who were receiving chemotherapy without disease were receiving it to the very last day of life.

'So at that point I discovered that there may be some issues there.'

On Friday, Fata broke down in court as he was sentenced to more than four decades in prison for what the judge described as a 'huge, horrific series of criminal acts' that had affected hundreds

Comfort: Cheryl Blades, (left), of Waterford, hugs a lady who asked not to be named. She was treated by Fata while she was pregnant twice, and is still treated for an unknown condition

In the final hearing, prosecutor Barbara McQuade branded Fata 'the most egregious fraudster in the history of this country'.

The doctor had remained stone-faced earlier in the week as his former patients had appeared in court to detail the shocking consequences of being put through unnecessary chemotherapy.

But during his sentencing, Fata - whose business, Michigan Hematology Oncology, had many upscale offices in the area - repeatedly broke down in loud sobs as he begged for mercy.

Speaking publicly for the first time since he was arrested in August 2013, the oncologist said: 'I misused my talents, yes, and permitted this sin to enter me because of power and greed.'

He added: 'My quest for power is self-destructive.'

Fata, who turned and apologized to his victims in the courtroom, admitted his patients had knocked on his door 'seeking compassion and care', but he had 'failed them', according to NBC News.

Sentencing Fata, U.S. District Judge Paul Borman said the 50-year-old defendant had 'shut down whatever compassion he had as a doctor and switched it to making money'.

Fata pleaded guilty last year to fraud, money laundering and conspiracy. 

Because he did not strike a deal with prosecutors, Borman had needed much of the week to hear details about the treatments. Patients and relatives had hired a bus to get to court to watch.

Melinda Tolar, of Oxford, holds a picture of her father, Stanton Richard Lamb, who died under Fata's care

Victims react to 45 year sentence for Dr. Farid Fata

This unidentified patient or relative told reporters on Friday that the doctor's sentence 'just wasn't enough'

This victim said she was 'disappointed' by U.S. District Judge Paul Borman's ruling. Former patients and their loved ones dressed in yellow for the sentencing on Friday in a show of solidarity.

'He preyed on our trust, our exhaustion, our fears,' said Ellen Piligiam, whose late father, a doctor, was administered powerful drugs he didn't need for a tumor in his shoulder.

Federal prosecutor Catherine Dick had asked for a 175-year prison sentence. 'It is not mob justice. It is appropriate for this crime,' the prosecutor told the judge, referring to the extraordinary request.

However, Fata's defense team had sought 25 years for the disgraced doctor, saying he had been abandoned by his family - who are no longer in the U.S. - and had not been visited since his arrest.

Outside court, many former patients were disappointed with the punishment, deeming it too short.

'Prosecutors did a fantastic job - and he got 45 years. It's a lifetime sentence for the rest of us,' said Monica Flagg, 53, who was treated for cancer before doctors examining a broken leg found she had no cancer. 'What about all the grave markers out there that all the victims' families have to look at?'

Cancer specialist Dr Fata owned Michigan Hematology Oncology (pictured) in Detroit 

Victims of Dr Farid Fata speak out against corrupt doctor

Liz Lupo, meanwhile, held a picture of her mother, Marianne Lupo, who died in 2007 at age 62. 

She believes Fata's treatments hastened her death. 'It's not justice at all,' Lupo said.

Another woman tearfully told ClickOnDetroit.com: 'It just wasn't enough.' 

The government identified 553 victims of Fata's crimes, including one man who lost both of his legs due to excessive treatment. Meanwhile, Medicare and insurance firms paid out millions.

Fata's clinic, Michigan Hematology Oncology, had seven offices in the Detroit area and a related business that performed tests to look for cancer. Testifying for the government, two experts from Harvard medical school said they were troubled after looking at a small portion of patient files.

The court heard Fata administered 'stunning' doses of a powerful, expensive drug to his patients, exposing them to life-threatening infections. According to Dr Dan Longo, a Harvard medical professor, a drug called Rituximab can weaken the immune system if overused on patients.

Victims and their families walk out from the court after their testimony was heard on Monday

Terry Spurlock, from Holly, Michigan, and his wife Nikii outside court on Monday. He was among the patients fleeced out of their money by Fata

It's typically given eight times for aggressive lymphoma. 

One patient got it 94 times. Another got it 76 times. 

There were more than 9,000 unnecessary infusions or injections.

'There is an aggressive approach to treating cancer,' said Dr Longo.

'This was beyond. This was over the top. It's a stunning number of injections of that drug.'

According to federal prosecutors, Dr Fata, of Oakland Township, 'systematically defrauded Medicare by submitting false claims for services that were medically unnecessary.' He apparently defrauded the federally funded healthcare program out of roughly $35million over a two-year period.

Emotional: Ellen Piligian speaks about her father, a former patient of Fata, outside federal court on Monday

Angela Swantek, an oncology nurse who spent time at one of Fata's clinics, said she first complained to investigators about the doctor's wrongdoings as early as 2010

Following Fata's 2013 arrest, Angela Swantek, an oncology nurse who spent time at one of Fata's clinics, said she first complained to investigators about the doctor's wrongdoings as early as 2010.

'I don't know how he's gotten away with it for this long,' she told ABC News.

'I was disgusted. I got in the car, I was still sitting in the parking lot and I was truly almost in tears just because of what I saw and how patients were getting their chemotherapy.' 

Fata will get credit for about two years served in custody since his arrest in 2013. 

His stay in the federal prison system also could be shortened with good behavior.

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