(HOUSTON, Texas) - An employee of a Houston drug counseling company has been charged with allowing a federal defendant to submit another's urine specimen for a drug test and allowing federal defendants to stay for less than 10 minutes of their required hour-long drug counseling sessions in exchange for cash payments, United States Attorney Don DeGabrielle announced today.

Al Green, 42, of Houston, was charged in a four-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury Nov. 14, 2007. Special Agents of the FBI arrested Green this morning and is expected to make his initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Frances Stacy at 2:00 this afternoon.

According to the indictment, Green worked for a private company in Houston that provided drug counseling and drug testing services for the United States Probation Office to federal defendants on probation or serving terms of supervised release. The counseling sessions are supposed to last one hour. The indictment alleges that on April 24 and Aug. 8 of this year, Green signed a document stating a defendant had attended a one-hour counseling session when, in fact, Green allowed the defendant to stay only 10 minutes or less in exchange for a $10 payment. The indictment further alleges that on April 26, Green signed a document stating he had collected a urine specimen from a defendant according to established procedures when, in fact, he had allowed the defendant to submit another person's urine in exchange for a $25 payment.

Based on these allegations, the indictment charges three counts of making a false statement concerning a matter within the judicial branch of the United States, a charge that carries a punishment of up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine per count. The indictment also charges one count of falsifying the drug testing document with intent to impede and obstruct the proper administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the judicial branch, a charge that carries a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Gregg Costa.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until convicted through due process of law.