Woman accused of bilking millions from doctor

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PALM HARBOR — It didn't take Sherri Lynn Ventresca long to start paying her bills with money that was supposed to purchase cancer patients' chemotherapy drugs, authorities say.

But it took Dr. Anda Norbergs of Palm Harbor's Tampa Bay Area Cancer Consultants nearly eight years to realize that she had been bilked out of several million dollars.

Norbergs, who said her life has been ruined as a result of Ventresca's actions, was at peace Thursday after her former employee was arrested in Marion County.

"I'm very pleased," Norbergs said. "I've been suffering in financial ruins while she's been running around with millions. The drug companies came after me. They cut me off so I can't get any pharmaceuticals. I have one company I get medicine from and I have to pay c.o.d."

Ventresca, 50, of 1074 Greywood Ave., Tarpon Springs, was arrested early Thursday morning and faces first-degree fraud and theft charges. She was in the Marion County jail in lieu of $2.2-million bail.

Pinellas County sheriff's Detective Mitch Reed said that he can account for a little more than $2-million missing from the clinic. "We suspect it's a lot more, but that's what we can prove," Reed said Thursday.

Ventresca was hired by the cancer center in 1999 to keep the books. Reed said she "almost immediately from the time they hired her started embezzling money."

Reed said Ventresca initially was paying her personal bills with the center's checking account and because she was in charge of the books, she would make it look like the money was going other places.

Reed said a few months after she was hired, Ventresca came up with the scheme to open fictitious companies with names similar to the companies that were supplying the cancer drugs.

For Priority Healthcare, she set up a company named Priority Home Construction, Reed said. For Cardinal Health, he said Ventresca had a company simply named Cardinal. And for McKesson Drug Co., she had a company named McKesson, Reed said.

"She would write a check to Priority and take it to the doctor to sign," Reed said. "They thought they were paying pharmaceuticals bills, but she would take the checks to the accounts of the fake companies. "

Reed said the checks were in the $9,000 to $10,000 range and that this went on for about eight years.

A year and a half ago, Norbergs was informed by a pharmaceutical company that the center hadn't paid an $18,000 bill. She called the company and was told that the company hadn't received a payment in six to eight weeks.

Norbergs said she then went to sunbiz.org, a site operated by the Florida Division of Corporations, and discovered the fictitious companies that Ventresca had set up.

Norbergs is still managing to treat cancer patients, but says it has been tough.

"It's hard in the practice of oncology," she said. "I'm underwater on all my drugs. I had to do a personal bankruptcy to save my house. I lost all my savings and had a divorce in the process."

Comments on this article

by frustrated family member	Jul 24, 2008 7:32 PM
Do not think for one minute that her family condones what she has done. Some people should think of how things effect their family members when they do something like this instead of just thinking of themselves.

by patricia	Jul 24, 2008 4:44 PM
i saw her and her family at the local relay for life and she was staying in an RV that probably cost over $200.00. She was smiling and walking around the track and telling everyone to come and look at her RV!!!

by Target	Jul 23, 2008 1:30 PM
How could the doctor not have KNOWN what checks she was signing and/or to whom? How could the doctor not have known bills were not being paid and money was missing. The TRUTH will come out, there is more to this story then meets the eye.

by Lucy in the Sky	Jul 22, 2008 8:19 PM
This is for "Happy Hoosier" He/She without SIN can THROW the first stone. We ALL make mistakes. What goes around comes around. R U Jealous? Look out when you "hope" someone rots in jail. That can come back to haunt you. Peace

by Happy Hoosier	Jul 22, 2008 2:49 PM
Folks in Indiana are laughing about this. She was born and raised in Indiana and came back and flaunted her money everywhere with lots of motorcycles and motor homes and different toys. She deserves everything she gets. I hope she rots in jail!

by Joseph	Jul 20, 2008 8:12 AM
HELLO PEOPLE! Greed was her motive and greed was her demise. But then again this seems to be the new mantra for the new American way , Enron ring a bell? Know of any greedy mortgage institutes? Oil companies? Plant food and buy a gun to defend them..

by who knows	Jul 20, 2008 8:05 AM
hum did people think to look into the doctor also for sucking money i have seen things like this before where the Dr takes it and plays it off on someone else 90% or Dr's are crooked as it is and if you read it shes not even from this country

by Chicken Soup	Jul 20, 2008 8:01 AM
What about the doctors bilking millions from the patients? I'll cheat the visits with my homemade chicken soup.

by Craig	Jul 20, 2008 7:51 AM
Amanda, since when has real estate been a good investment?

by could be you	Jul 19, 2008 8:23 AM
Wake up people. Everyone needs to check on their money. Cannot take the word of anyone this day & age

by where is the money	Jul 19, 2008 8:23 AM
This goes to show, just because that person shows up for work with an adorable smiling face doesn't mean (he/she) isn't taking you to the cleaners. Need to check on your accounts yourself. That is alot of the reason why people are bilked.

by Samuel	Jul 19, 2008 8:23 AM
WoW!! Finally a doctor gets it stuck to her rather than sticking it to the sick patients. Go girl-pay your bills and be prepared to become another girl's girl when you serve time in the joint!! But, free love is better than on $$, NO?

by Jorge	Jul 19, 2008 8:23 AM
All she has to do is join the Latin Kings and some idiot judge will let her go.

by Amanda	Jul 19, 2008 8:23 AM
I really hope that this doctor is able to get her life and her practice in order...and soon. I think its horrible that she was victimized like this! I hope that Sherri bought real estate or something of value that can be sold to get some $$$ back!

by cindy	Jul 19, 2008 8:22 AM
i give this women five stars,,, to do what she did was simply brillant!! and for eight yrs no less..but even so she's down the tubes for two of the eleven millon she took.. a good crooked lawyer and shazam out in three.. what a proud women,,at 50..

by Haven	Jul 19, 2008 8:22 AM
This may have been prevented had the dr had adequate internal controls in her medical practice. I'm not blaming the victim, most certainly, just trying to warn other sm. business owners to ensure they have internal controls & audits to prevent this.

by Pam	Jul 18, 2008 1:55 PM
I hope she never gets out of jail and has to pay every cent back to the DR,

by Kelly	Jul 18, 2008 10:48 AM
What a POS this person is. Throw the book at her.

by Jason R.	Jul 18, 2008 10:36 AM
Eight years before the doctor realized she was missing money? Wow.