St. Cloud Business Announces Imminent Closing

(KNSI) – Little Falls and St. Cloud retailer Baby’s on Broadway is closing following a wire fraud plea.

The announcement was made Monday afternoon on the company’s Facebook page. Owner Adelle Starin says in the post that she self-reported the $9 million scheme to U.S. Attorney Andy Luger. She is accused of submitting false claims to TRICARE, military healthcare run by the U.S. Department of Defense.

When TRICARE caught on, it began rejecting the claims. In response, Starin and Baby’s on Broadway allegedly created a made-up company called Sunshine Medical. She then went to two different lenders looking for loans to buy inventory for Baby’s on Broadway from this fake business. She submitted invoices allegedly showing a relationship between Baby’s on Broadway and Sunshine. They advanced millions to her based on fraud.

Starin takes full responsibility for the illegal scheme, calling her staff amazing and asking people to show them grace. No final day for Baby’s on Broadway was given, but the business expects things to be wrapped up in a matter of weeks.

___