The owner and CEO of an Oakland County facility, who is already facing a second-degree murder charge in connection with a deadly hyperbaric chamber explosion, is now facing health care fraud charges.
Tamela Peterson, 59, of Brighton, was arraigned in 53rd District Court in Howell on nine counts of health care fraud, false claim on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, according to a release from Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s office. Each charge carries a potential penalty of up to four years in prison and fines of as much as $50,000.
Peterson is the former owner and chief executive officer of The Oxford Recovery Center in Brighton and The Oxford Center in Troy. The facilities provided treatment for individuals dealing with addiction and mental health challenges, including children enrolled in Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) programs for autism.
According to prosecutors, Peterson was aware of fraudulent billing practices and personally benefited from them, including claims submitted for services that were never provided.
The investigation began in September 2022 after complaints were filed by former patients and health care providers.
“Filing false claims impacts not only patients and providers, but also contributes to increased costs of healthcare and medical insurance for everybody,” said Nessel. “Health care fraud undermines the trust between patients and providers and patients’ notions of confidentiality and care. My office will continue to hold accountable those who take advantage of their practice for their own financial benefit.”
This comes as Peterson, along with Jeffrey Mosteller, 65, of Clinton Township, Gary Marken, 66, of Spring Arbor and Aleta Moffitt, 61, of Rochester Hills, are facing charges in the death of Thomas Cooper, a 5-year-old boy who was killed when the hyperbaric chamber he was receiving treatment in exploded at the Oxford Center in Troy on Jan. 31, 2025. The boy’s mother was also injured in the explosion.
The four workers are accused of ignoring several safety guidelines for operating hyperbaric chambers, including not using a grounding wrist strap, rolling back the chamber cycle count, giving the 5-year-old boy a blanket straight from a running dryer, using polyester pillows and more.
Related: Ex-employee says Oxford Center brushed off safety concerns years before hyperbaric chamber death
Peterson, the Oxford Center’s founder and CEO, along with Mosteller, the safety manager, and Marken, the primary management assistant, were charged with second-degree murder. They were also given the alternative charge of involuntary manslaughter, which means that a jury will decide which charge accurately fits their conduct.
Moffitt, who was allegedly operating the hyperbaric chamber at the time of the explosion, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and falsifying medical records.
On Tuesday, Jan. 20, the preliminary hearing for the four workers continued with arguments about whether or not there was enough evidence presented to bind the case over to circuit court, where the defendants could face trial.
As the hearing concluded at around 5 p.m., the judge said she needed some time to go over everything that was presented, and that she’d make her decision at a later date.
In the health care fraud case, Peterson was given a $10,000 personal recognizance bond. She is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 27 for a probable cause conference and on Feb. 3 for a preliminary examination.