Timmy G. Robinson Jr., the founder and owner of what was once Kentucky’s largest drug addiction treatment company, was criminally indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury on charges of wire fraud and money laundering.
The indictment, filed in the Eastern District of Kentucky, charges Robinson with fraudulently selling millions of dollars in the same IRS tax credits to two companies. Robinson “constituted a scheme” to “illicitly enrich” and sell these tax credits to two parties, the indictment says. Robinson is also charged with two counts of money laundering for allegedly using up the proceeds of fraudulent sales.
Mr. Robinson has resigned as CEO of ARC, company spokeswoman Vanessa Keaton announced Thursday. Robinson, 50, founded the company in 2012 after getting sober and telling people he felt called by God to help addicts in the state.
ARC, which at one time operated more than 40 drug treatment centers in the state, has been under investigation by the FBI since July 2024 for alleged Medicaid fraud. The investigation is continuing, the FBI confirmed Friday. In April, the Lexington Herald-Leader, in partnership with ProPublica, reported first-hand accounts from former ARC employees and customers who say they were told by ARC to submit false Medicaid claims or witnessed others billing for services that were never provided. “We have never knowingly or fraudulently billed Medicaid for services, and there is no evidence that the organization encouraged employees to falsify group notes for billing purposes,” the company said at the time.
Kent Wicker, Robinson’s lawyer, said he was surprised to learn that Robinson and his client were indicted over “disputes with certain investors that are currently pending in civil court.”
The dispute further escalated earlier this year, when ARC was sued by two companies, including Bahamas-based Angelica Capital Trust, to which Mr. Robinson sold IRS credits. But the companies allege that ARC illegally kept more than $8 million owed to them when it received the IRS debt. They allege that ARC has refused to repay a portion of its preliminary $28 million settlement with the Department of Justice over Medicaid fraud charges. Robinson has said he would pay creditors when the company is sold, and in January said a sale was imminent.
“To be clear, Mr. Robinson has not defrauded anyone, gained nothing from the transactions in question, and has done nothing for more than a decade other than to provide quality care to thousands of Kentuckians,” Wicker said in an emailed statement to the Herald-Leader and ProPublica. “We look forward to defending this case in court.”
ARC applied for two COVID-19-related tax credits starting in 2023, totaling nearly $7 million.
Robinson sold his first tax credit rights to a loan company in July 2025, according to the indictment. Under this agreement, the purchaser will pay ARC $2.7 million in exchange for future tax credit repayments upon receipt of IRS funds. Robinson signed the contract, and later that month the buyer wired the agreed upon amount to ARC.
Shortly thereafter, Robinson “devised a scheme” to sell the same amount of tax credits to a second company, and in doing so “misrepresented” the original $2.7 million in tax credits as if they were available for purchase, according to the indictment. According to the indictment, Robinson “concealed previous transactions” from the new buyers.
In November, Mr. Robinson entered into a deal with a second buyer, who made a wire transfer containing $2.7 million in tax credits from the two sales.
When the IRS paid ARC a COVID-19 tax refund in December, “ARC, at Robinson’s direction, depleted ERC’s tax dollars.” [Employee Retention Credit] and provided funding for other operating expenses and debts,” the indictment states.
Keaton declined further comment on the matter, citing the pending litigation. However, she said ARC continues to operate normally.
“All facilities, programs and services remain open and fully operational,” Keaton said in an emailed statement. “Our management, employees and clinical staff remain committed to providing quality care and support to the individuals and families we serve.”
Robinson faces 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for wire fraud, which is twice the amount he lost. Each money laundering charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
We take a closer look at how ARC treated people who came to the organization seeking help with sobriety. If you are a current or former client or employee, we would love to hear from you.
