An assisted living community already being sued over allegations of elder abuse and consumer fraud just had racketeering charges added to a complaint against it.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) filed an amended complaint Oct. 2 to add racketeering charges to the state’s ongoing lawsuit against Heritage Village Assisted Living. Mayes also asked the court to seize control of Visions Mesa and Visions Apache Junction, two other assisted living communities controlled by the owners of Heritage Village.
The new claims stem from evidence discovered during the lawsuit, as well as evidence uncovered by the receiver appointed by the court to take over operations of Heritage Village, according to the attorney general.
“My office took decisive action earlier this year to protect the residents of Heritage Village by barring the owners from operating the facility,” Mayes said in a news release. “Since then, we’ve discovered just how critical those actions were.”
In addition to asking the courts to expand the receivership to the two Visions communities, the amended lawsuit seeks damages against Gary Langendoen, senior managing director of Madison Realty Companies, which manages Heritage Village; his wife, Tracy Langendoen; and two high-level employees, for racketeering activities, including forgery, scheme or artifice to defraud, and illegal conduct of an enterprise. The updated complaint also expands on the allegations of consumer fraud and elder abuse.
“Our most important task is protecting the vulnerable residents who are still living in Langendoen-controlled facilities and bringing in new owners who will run those facilities properly,” Mayes said. “The sheer magnitude of the Heritage Village fraud is shocking, but sadly it is not surprising.”
Mayes filed the original lawsuit in March, asking the courts to appoint a receiver for Heritage Village. The goal, she said, was to bring in a new professional management company to improve resident care and to prevent Heritage Village from losing its license — the Arizona Department of Health Services had initiated a license revocation proceeding.
At the time, Gary Langendoen called the appointment of a receiver “an important step forward.” He did not respond to requests for comment from McKnight’s Senior Living about the amended complaint.
According to Mayes, the receiver engaged Mission Management Services to improve resident care and negotiated a settlement with ADHS to preserve the community’s license. The receiver now is working to find experienced owners to buy Heritage Village.
During the invention of the community’s financials and ongoing litigation, Mayes said, new facts emerged about the previous ownership and management of the community, including:
- More than $2.9 million allegedly was diverted from Heritage Village operating accounts under the direction of owners Gary and Tracy Langendoen. The funds reportedly were used to pay debts on other Langendoen properties or were transferred directly to other Langendoen companies instead of being used to care for residents. Mayes alleged that the Langendoens freely moved money and supplies between Heritage Village and other facilities in Arizona, Utah, Colorado and California without proper accounting or documentation.
- The transfers included at least $890,000 moved from Heritage Village to Visions Apache Junction, and at least $52,000 was moved to Visions Mesa, according to the AG.
- Heritage Village’s insurance policy was canceled after the owners reportedly did not pay the premiums. Mayes alleges that Gary Langendoen raised $200,000 from investors to reinstate the policy but that that money never was transferred to the insurance company, forcing the receiver to secure “last resort” coverage at a cost of more than $500,000.
- At least six license applications with ADHS between October 2022 and August 2023 were determined to be forged and contained false information and “fake” supporting documents” with forged signatures, according to Mayes.
- The state further accuses the Langendoens of requiring Heritage Village to pay one of its companies a $25,000 monthly fee for management and accounting services.
“This much money moving between facilities indicates that many, if not all, of the facilities are in dire financial straits, and the Langendoens have no qualms about looting one facility to keep another afloat,” Mayes said. “We are asking the court to remove the Langendoens from control of the two Visions facilities before they reach a crisis point and put the residents in even more danger.”
