UnitedHealth Group faces a criminal and civil investigation from the Department of Justice, the company disclosed on Thursday.
The company in an SEC filing said it was complying with the requests from the DOJ. UnitedHealth said it reached out “proactively” to the DOJ after media reports about a probe into its Medicare practices.
“The Company has now begun complying with formal criminal and civil requests from the Department. The Company has full confidence in its practices and is committed to working cooperatively with the Department throughout this process,” UnitedHealth said.
UnitedHealth’s announcement that it faces a federal investigation adds to an increasingly tumultuous year for the country’s largest healthcare company.
The company was thrown into the spotlight after last year’s fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York, sparking a national conversation about frustrations with healthcare companies.
UnitedHealth Group’s CEO abruptly left the company in May, and the company’s stock price plunged following a series of reports in The Wall Street Journal about civil and criminal probes into the company. The WSJ reported in May that the DOJ’s healthcare-fraud unit was investigating possible Medicare fraud at the company, adding to investigations of potential antitrust violations and its Medicare billing practices.
The company was the worst performer on the Dow Jones Industrial Average during the first half of 2025. Its stock price declined by 1.5 percent in morning trading following the announcement.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, UnitedHealth said it has “full confidence” in its practices. It added that a court-appointed monitor found no wrongdoing after a decade-long probe into its Medicare Advantage business.
“The Company is committed to maintaining the integrity of its business practices and serving as reliable stewards of American tax dollars,” UnitedHealth said.
The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
(TOKYO) – -A U.S. CV-22 Osprey made what Japanese officials called an emergency landing Thursday at Hanamaki Airport in northeastern Japan, about 300 miles north of Tokyo.
Airport officials say the tilt-rotor aircraft touched down safely after reporting a mechanical issue mid-flight. The U.S. Air Force said the craft made a “precautionary landing” during a flight from Misawa Air Base to its home base, Yokota Air Base.
No injuries were reported. Operations for commercial flights continued as normal. Video from Japanese broadcaster NHK shows the aircraft taxiing to the apron where uniformed personnel could be seen on top of the aircraft, near the center, inspecting the aircraft.
Japan’s Defense Ministry says it has dispatched staff to the site and is in contact with U.S. forces.
The landing came six days after another U.S. Osprey set down in Akita Prefecture for a safety inspection, according to Japanese officials. That aircraft remained on the ground for over seven hours.
A U.S. military public affairs officer described the Thursday incident as a “precautionary landing.” The V-22 Osprey has been involved in several incidents in recent years, including a crash off Yakushima, in southern Japan, in 2023 that killed eight and grounded the fleet for months.
Cullen Drenkhahn, a 1st lieutenant serving as a public affairs advisor for the 353d Special Operations Wing Kadena AB, told ABC News, “I can confirm a U.S. CV-22 Osprey conducted a precautionary landing today at Iwate Hanamaki Airport at 9:45 a.m.”
“The landing was executed safely and in accordance with policies. An assessment is ongoing to gather additional information. No injuries or damages occurred. There were no interruptions to airport operations,” Drenkhahn said. “The aircraft is assigned to the 353rd Special Operations Wing and was flying from Misawa Air Base to its home base, Yokota Air Base.
He added, “No further information at this time. the safety of our pilots and aircrew, as well as the men and women of Japan is our foremost priority.”
(WASHINGTON) — A senior Department of Justice official is meeting with longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday in Tallahassee, Florida, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The meeting between Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and Maxwell is occurring in downtown Tallahassee at the U.S. attorney’s office, which is located inside the federal courthouse, sources familiar with the matter said.
Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and other charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022. She is serving her sentence at a federal prison in Tallahassee.
Blanche arrived at the federal courthouse around 9 a.m. ET. He shook his head and said “no” when asked if he had anything to say ahead of his meeting with Maxwell.
Maxwell’s attorneys were also seen entering the federal courthouse in Tallahassee.
“We’re looking forward to a productive day,” David O. Markus, Maxwell’s appellate lawyer, told ABC News. He declined further comment.
The Justice Department said earlier this week that the meeting between Blanche and Maxwell would occur “in the coming days.”
“President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,” Blanche said in the statement posted by Attorney General Pam Bondi on X earlier this week.
Maxwell’s attorney confirmed earlier this week that they were in discussions with the government about the visit, saying in a statement that “Ghislaine will always testify truthfully.”
Separately, on Wednesday, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a subpoena for Maxwell for a deposition to occur at the prison on Aug. 11.
“The facts and circumstances surrounding both your and Mr. Epstein’s cases have received immense public interest and scrutiny,” Comer wrote in a statement Wednesday.
(WASHINGTON) — A senior Department of Justice official is meeting with longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday in Tallahassee, Florida, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
The meeting between Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and Maxwell is occurring in downtown Tallahassee at the U.S. attorney’s office, which is located inside the federal courthouse, sources familiar with the matter said.
Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and other charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022. She is serving her sentence at a federal prison in Tallahassee.
Blanche arrived at the federal courthouse around 9 a.m. ET. He shook his head and said “no” when asked if he had anything to say ahead of his meeting with Maxwell.
Maxwell’s attorneys were also seen entering the federal courthouse in Tallahassee.
“We’re looking forward to a productive day,” David O. Markus, Maxwell’s appellate lawyer, told ABC News. He declined further comment.
The Justice Department said earlier this week that the meeting between Blanche and Maxwell would occur “in the coming days.”
“President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,” Blanche said in the statement posted by Attorney General Pam Bondi on X earlier this week.
Maxwell’s attorney confirmed earlier this week that they were in discussions with the government about the visit, saying in a statement that “Ghislaine will always testify truthfully.”
Separately, on Wednesday, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a subpoena for Maxwell for a deposition to occur at the prison on Aug. 11.
“The facts and circumstances surrounding both your and Mr. Epstein’s cases have received immense public interest and scrutiny,” Comer wrote in a statement Wednesday.
(WASHINGTON) — A senior Department of Justice official is expected to meet with longtime Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday in Tallahassee, Florida, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the expected meeting between Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and Maxwell is occurring in downtown Tallahassee at the U.S. attorney’s office, which is located inside the federal courthouse.
Maxwell will be transported Thursday morning from the federal prison where she is being held to the U.S. attorneys office.
Blanche arrived at the federal courthouse around 9 a.m. ET. He shook his head and said “no” when asked if he had anything to say ahead of his meeting with Maxwell.
Maxwell’s attorneys were also seen entering the federal courthouse in Tallahassee.
“We’re looking forward to a productive day,” David O. Markus, Maxwell’s appellate lawyer, told ABC News. He declined further comment.
The Justice Department said earlier this week that the meeting between Blanche and Maxwell would occur “in the coming days.”
“President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,” Blanche said in the statement posted by Attorney General Pam Bondi on X earlier this week.
Maxwell’s attorney confirmed earlier this week that they were in discussions with the government about the visit, saying in a statement that “Ghislaine will always testify truthfully.”
Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and other charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022. She is serving her sentence at a federal prison in Tallahassee.
Separately, on Wednesday, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer issued a subpoena for Maxwell for a deposition to occur at the prison on Aug. 11.
“The facts and circumstances surrounding both your and Mr. Epstein’s cases have received immense public interest and scrutiny,” Comer wrote in a statement Wednesday.
(TEL AVIV, Israel) — Hamas’ latest response to a U.S.-brokered Gaza ceasefire proposal is “currently being reviewed” by Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Thursday.
Hamas announced Wednesday night it had submitted to mediators a response to the ceasefire deal currently on the table. The details of Hamas’ response were not immediately made public.
Sources familiar with the matter tell ABC News that a trilateral meeting in Italy between top Israeli, Qatari and American officials is slated to discuss Hamas’s response as early as today. The U.S. State Department said Wednesday President Trump’s Mideast Envoy was traveling to Italy to meet with top officials regarding a Gaza ceasefire.
Representatives from Israel and the militant group have been in Doha, Qatar, for more than two weeks working on a ceasefire proposal for the 21-month-old conflict in Gaza.
Those negotiations continue as more than 100 aid groups warned Wednesday that the enclave was on the verge of “mass starvation.”
(WASHINGTON) — Ghislaine Maxwell engaged in a “significant pattern of dishonest conduct,” enabled and participated in the abuse of multiple teenage girls, and failed to take responsibility for her crimes.
That was the assessment of the federal prosecutors who brought a criminal case against the longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein and sent her to prison for 20 years.
Now, three years later — and amid the ongoing controversy surrounding the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files — the Department of Justice has decided to approach Maxwell, 63, to purportedly learn more about her knowledge of whether Epstein’s sex trafficking extended to people other than himself.
Prosecutors’ sentencing memorandum after Maxwell’s 2021 conviction offers a frank assessment of Maxwell’s “monstrous” crimes and casts doubt on her honesty ahead of her meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche later this week.
“In short, the defendant has lied repeatedly about her crimes, exhibited an utter failure to accept responsibility, and demonstrated repeated disrespect for the law and the Court,” federal prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York wrote in June 2022.
Blanche is set to meet with Maxwell in the coming days to potentially learn more information “about anyone who has committed crimes against victims.”
Ahead of the meeting, Maxwell’s appellate counsel David Oscar Markus vowed that she would “testify truthfully” and thanked President Donald Trump for his “commitment to uncovering the truth in this case.”
Maxwell continues to appeal her conviction. Her lawyers have asked the Supreme Court to throw out her case, arguing a non-prosecution agreement that Epstein made with federal prosecutors in Florida in 2007 allegedly barred her subsequent prosecution in New York more than a decade later.
The Trump administration asked the high court earlier this month to deny Maxwell’s petition.
In their sentencing memo in 2022, defense lawyers argued Maxwell “should not bear all the punishment for which Epstein should have been held responsible.”
“Epstein was the mastermind, Epstein was the principal abuser, and Epstein orchestrated the crimes for his personal gratification. Indeed, had Ghislaine Maxwell never had the profound misfortune of meeting Jeffrey Epstein over 30 years ago, she would not be here,” they argued.
Prosecutors said Maxwell enabled Epstein and directly participated in the abuse.
According to prosecutors, the testimony elicited at Maxwell’s trial demonstrated she was a vital participant in Epstein’s crimes, offering a veneer of respectability and trust before the convicted sex offender abused dozens of teenage girls.
She identified and preyed on vulnerable young women, groomed them to normalize their abuse and participated in the abuse — directly enabling one of the most significant sex trafficking operations in US history, prosecutors said.
“Maxwell befriended her victims, won their trust, slowly broke down their boundaries, and normalized sexual abuse,” prosecutors wrote in the the memo. “Maxwell’s victims trusted her: she was a seemingly respectable woman who showed interest in them and promised to help them. She was key to the entire operation of the scheme, and Epstein could not have committed these crimes without her.”
According to the government’s sentencing memorandum, Maxwell “personally engaged in sexual abuse when she fondled the breasts” of three victims. She was also “the person who was most frequently in the room when Epstein abused” one of the victims, who testified under the name Jane.
“Years of sexual abuse, multiple victims, devastating psychological harm: none of this could have happened without Maxwell,” prosecutors wrote.
Maxwell repeatedly lied to officials, prosecutors said Prosecutors repeatedly emphasized at trial that Maxwell should not be trusted, arguing that she “engaged in a significant pattern of dishonest conduct, which speaks volumes about her character.”
They identified at least four instances in which Maxwell allegedly lied or made dishonest representations to the authorities or in civil lawsuits.
During a 2016 deposition, she said under oath that she never gave Annie Farmer, a victim who testified at trial, a massage. Farmer’s testimony at trial “established that was a lie,” prosecutors said.
She allegedly lied to court officials during an interview about her assets. When the court denied her bail application, the judge noted that Maxwell “misrepresent[ed] key facts to Pretrial Services and, by extension, the Court.”
Prosecutors said that Maxwell lied in November 2021 when she told the court, “I have not committed any crime” in response to a question about whether she engaged in plea discussions with the government.
Maxwell also falsely claimed she had no assets when she interviewed with the court’s probation office, despite having previously claimed she had $22 million in assets. She also declined to provide information about the circumstances of her marriage, prosecutors said.
“In short, the defendant decides when she wishes to disclose facts to the Court, and those facts shift when it serves the defendant’s interests,” prosecutors wrote.
Maxwell profited from relationship with Epstein, prosecutors said Prosecutors alleged that Maxwell lived a “remarkable life of privilege” and received approximately $23 million from Epstein during the timeframe of their alleged crimes.
Maxwell also received a townhouse in New York from Epstein and benefited from his lavish lifestyle, prosecutors allege. Epstein also bequeathed her $10 million from his estate, though Maxwell has not received those funds because the estate is in probate.
“As part of a disturbing agreement with Jeffrey Epstein, Maxwell identified, groomed, and abused multiple victims, while she enjoyed a life of extraordinary luxury and privilege. In her wake, Maxwell left her victims permanently scarred with emotional and psychological injuries,” prosecutors wrote.
Maxwell deflected responsibility for her crimes, prosecutors said At her sentencing, some of the witnesses who testified at trial urged Judge Alison Nathan to impose a severe sentence due to the harm Maxwell had caused and her apparent lack of remorse.
A witness who testified under the name Kate described Maxwell as “a manipulative, cruel and merciless person who only uses kindness to manipulate and generosity to seek recognition.”
“The lack of remorse or responsibility taken by Ghislaine for how she ruined the lives of countless women and children is exactly how we can tell that she doesn’t think what she did is wrong. She is not sorry, and she would do it again,” Kate said.
Annie Farmer asked the judge to consider the “ongoing suffering of the many women whom she abused and exploited” and how Maxwell’s inability to accept the consequences of her crimes continued to harm the victims.
“I ask you to bear in mind how Maxwell’s unwillingness to acknowledge her crimes, her lack of remorse and her repeated lies about her victims created the need for many of us to engage in a long fight for justice that has felt like a black hole sucking in our precious time, energy and well-being for much too long now, things that cannot be replaced,” Farmer said.
When Maxwell briefly addressed the court, she said that she “empathize[s] deeply with all of the victims in this case” and that meeting Epstein years earlier was her “greatest regret.”
Her lawyers have long argued that Maxwell was unfairly targeted for Epstein’s crimes after his death, and her statement at sentencing echoed that argument.
“Jeffrey Epstein should have been here before all of you. He should have stood before you all those years ago,” she said. “He should have stood before you in 2005, again in 2009, and again in 2019, all of the many times he was accused, charged, and prosecuted. But today it is not about Epstein ultimately. It is for me to be sentenced and for the victims to address me, and me alone, in this court.”
ABC News’ Peter Charalambous contributed to this report.
Russia Ministry of Emergency Situations/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
(LONDON and MOSCOW) — A passenger plane carrying 48 people crashed on Thursday morning in Russia’s far eastern Amur region with no survivors, according to the local governor.
The Russian news agency Interfax reported that the plane’s wreckage was found around nine miles from its intended destination in the town of Tynda, having traveled from the regional hub of Blagoveshchensk some 360 miles away.
Gov. Vasily Orlov said in a post to Telegram that the An-24 aircraft vanished from radar close to Tynda. Emergency services later found the wreckage in nearby woods. “I regret to inform you that there are no survivors,” Orlov wrote in a later post. “Rescuers have reached the crash site.” Orlov declared three days of mourning.
Artem Korenyako — a spokesperson for Russia’s federal aviation agency Rosaviatsiya — wrote on Telegram that a search and rescue helicopter “discovered a burning fuselage.”
Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations also reported the discovery of burning wreckage in a post to Telegram. More than 50 people and 10 pieces of equipment were deployed in search and rescue efforts, the ministry said.
Irkutsk Oblast Gov. Igor Kobzev said that “the flight crew, technical staff and flight attendants lived in the Irkutsk region.” He noted that officials are working to “get a full list of passengers today and, of course, to see who of them lives in the Irkutsk region.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
ABC News’ Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday urged national unity as demonstrators took to the streets of more than a dozen cities nationwide to protest a controversial bill that critics said will neuter two key anti-corruption agencies.
Ukrainian media estimated that thousands of people gathered near the presidential office in the capital Kyiv on Wednesday evening, despite a nightly curfew and the ever-present threat of Russian drone and missile strikes.
Those gathered were protesting a controversial law approved by parliament and signed by Zelenskyy on Tuesday. The bill will bring the Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and its partner organization, the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), under the direct control of the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO).
The prosecutor general is appointed by the president, prompting concern among critics that the law will give the president’s office undue influence over NABU and SAPO.
The president sought to ease tensions on Wednesday, promising to put forward a new bill to ensure the independence of the anti-corruption bodies.
Zelenskyy said in a post to Telegram that he met with the heads of all law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies.
“We agreed that the heads of these institutions will jointly propose an action plan — a plan of concrete steps that can strengthen the rule of law in Ukraine,” he wrote. “Of course, everyone has heard what people are saying these days — what they are saying on social media, to each other, on the streets. It’s not falling on deaf ears.”
“We’ve analyzed all the concerns, all the aspects of what needs to be changed and what needs to be stepped up,” he added.
“And what will remain most important is not losing our national unity, ending the war, stopping this Russian evil and securing a dignified peace for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy wrote. “And exactly as we all envision it — as a full-fledged part of Europe. We’ll make it happen.”
On Thursday, Zelenskyy said had approved the text of the new bill which would be sent to parliament. “The most important thing is real tools, no Russian ties and the independence of NABU and [SAPO],” the president wrote.
Both NABU and SAPO were set up in the aftermath of Ukraine’s pro-Western Maidan Revolution in 2014, with the intention of rooting out systemic corruption and helping Kyiv reform its democratic system with an eye on EU accession.
Critics of the new legislation say it constitutes a power grab by Zelenskyy and his presidential office — which is headed by influential chief of staff Andriy Yermak — that undermines Ukrainian democracy and threatens the country’s EU ambitions.
Zelenskyy and his supporters have defended the measures as necessary to root out Russian influence in NABU and SAPO.
The passing of the law followed a series of raids on NABU employees by officers from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the PGO on Monday. Officers also began inspecting the handling of state secrets at SAPO.
“The anti-corruption infrastructure will work,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram late on Tuesday. “Only without Russian influences — everything needs to be cleansed of this. And there should be more justice.”
The domestic political crisis erupted as a Ukrainian delegation headed to Istanbul, Turkey, for the latest round of ceasefire talks with Russian negotiators. Wednesday’s meeting there ended after less than an hour.
Vladimir Medinsky, who led the Russian delegation, told reporters after the talks that the two sides agreed on a new prisoner exchange of at least 1,200 people.
The two sides also discussed the memoranda exchanged during the last round of talks on June 2, Medinsky said, adding that the delegations were “quite far from each other.” The parties agreed to continue negotiations, Medinsky said.
When asked about a potential meeting between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Medinsky said any potential meeting should be carefully prepared.
Cross-border drone strikes continued despite the new talks. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces downed 42 Ukrainian drones overnight into Thursday morning.
Russian drones and missiles, meanwhile, targeted Odesa, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Sumy and Mykolaiv regions, Zelenskyy said in a post to Telegram.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 103 strike drones and four missiles into the country overnight into Thursday morning. Ninety drones and one missile were shot down or suppressed, the air force said, with impacts by 13 drones and three missiles across 11 locations. Falling debris from interceptions was reported in six places.
“Russia does not stop its terror, blocks diplomacy and that is why it deserves full-scale sanctions responses and our strikes on its logistics, military bases and military production facilities,” the president wrote.
“We will do everything to make diplomacy work,” he added. “But it is Russia that must end this war that it started itself.”
ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman, Will Gretsky and Tanya Stukalova contributed to this report.
Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Columbia University has agreed to pay $200 million over the next three years to resolve claims it discriminated against Jewish students — an agreement the university said will restore hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants the Trump administration had terminated or paused earlier this year.
“While Columbia does not admit to wrongdoing with this resolution agreement, the institution’s leaders have recognized, repeatedly, that Jewish students and faculty have experienced painful, unacceptable incidents, and that reform was and is needed,” the university said in a statement.
In addition, the school agreed to pay $21 million to settle investigations brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Columbia also agreed to submit to a federal monitor that will assure compliance with admissions and hiring practices and provide certain information about foreign students to immigration authorities.
In a social media post Wednesday evening, President Donald Trump celebrated the agreement.
“Columbia has agreed to pay a penalty of $200 Million Dollars to the United States Government for violating Federal Law, in addition to over $20 Million to their Jewish employees who were unlawfully targeted and harassed,” Trump said in the post.
“Numerous other Higher Education Institutions that have hurt so many, and been so unfair and unjust, and have wrongly spent federal money, much of it from our government, are upcoming,” Trump added.
The agreement puts an end to a months-long dispute between Columbia and the Trump administration over federal funding.
In March, the Trump administration said it was canceling $400 million worth of grants and contracts to the university citing what it called “the school’s continued inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students.”
Later that month, the university agreed to nine demands from the Trump administration, including banning masks and stricter controls over its Middle East studies department.
The university said the agreement announced Wednesday builds on steps it previously took as part of negotiations with the administration and “builds on Columbia’s broader commitment to combating antisemitism.”
As a result of the agreement, the university said “a vast majority” of the federal grants which were terminated or paused in March would be reinstated and that “Columbia’s access to billions of dollars in current and future grants will be restored.” That includes grants terminated by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Health and Human Services.
Earlier this week, the school said it was disciplining more than 70 students over two pro-Palestinian protests on the campus in the spring — including a protest in May when students took over Butler Library.
The campus was roiled by protests last spring over the Israel-Hamas war. In late April 2024, pro-Palestinian protesters barricaded themselves inside Hamilton Hall, leading to several arrests. The students involved were later expelled, suspended or had their degrees temporarily revoked.
