The undercover officer said Ihle told him they were going to take him off work and explained the supplemental insurance available to him.

“That was before I ever saw a doctor for the knee,” the officer said.

Although the officer’s injury was only on paper, an MRI read by a doctor chosen by One Stop showed a “slight tear” of the meniscus.

The clinic made a compelling argument for surgery. “I had to do some quick talking to talk them out of that,” the officer recalled with a laugh.

The longer the clinic kept him out of work, the more HPD would pay.

“I would just go over there, hang around, not really do anything,” said the officer, who wore a hidden microphone during his therapy sessions. Case evidence includes hours of recordings of the undercover officer playing an arcade NASCAR game.

He was told the game improved eye-hand coordination.

“I don’t see any therapeutic rehabilitation involved in a little racecar machine,” he said. “But I’m not a doctor.”

Some therapists were competent and concerned about the officer’s well-being, Pudifin said. Many of those therapists later signed statements saying they falsified documents so they wouldn’t be fired.

Pudifin twice videotaped the officer entering the clinic and kept the video running until after the officer left the clinic eight minutes later.

The city received a bill for eight treatments for each of those dates.

“There’s no defense against that,” Pudifin said.

Shutting down the bad guys
In April, officers raided the clinic. Ihle, Olian and a therapist were arrested.

The therapist and Group, who cooperated with officials, weren’t charged.

On July 8, Ihle, Olian and another doctor were indicted for felony insurance fraud. The case is pending, according to John Brewer, assistant Harris County district attorney.

Putting the clinic out of business saved taxpayers millions of dollars and shuttered a clinic that gave injured officers inadequate care, Cano said.

Of the $3 million paid to One Stop since it opened in January 2001, Cano said he expects the city will get 30 to 40 percent back in restitution.

The city has recommended some changes in workers’ compensation law. These include the state creating a benchmark so cities will know how long rehabilitation for a particular injury should take.

Also, the city would like to guide, in a limited way, the medical care of its injured classified personnel.

Early this year, HR and HPD launched a program to train HPD staff about workplace safety, including signs of workers’ comp fraud.

“We know we’re paying bills that are padded,” Cano said, referring to all workers’ comp claims.

Now, thanks to those who protect the taxpayers of Space City, there’s one less source for those inflated bills.