Fake paramedic admits he was an imposter

DENVER - Todd Teel could go to jail for 18 months, which is nearly the same length of time he spent posing as a paramedic.

Teel pleaded guilty to a felony charge of criminal impersonation in Denver District Court this week. A judge could sentence him to up to a year and a half in prison and up to $100,000 in fines when he appears in court in March.

Teel was never a paramedic, but he played one in real life for 17 months treating patients in American Medical Response ambulances.

The Colorado Attorney General's Office filed charges against Teel in October, five months after he was first exposed in a 9NEWS report.

Teel faced multiple felony charges for allegedly forging his national paramedic certification card and impersonating a paramedic. He also faced a misdemeanor charge for the unauthorized practice of medicine.

Teel worked as a certified paramedic for American Medical Response (AMR) and was caught in December 2007 with a forged license. Court documents indicate he worked on calls to Denver and Longmont along with Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas and Jefferson Counties.

Teel was placed on leave when AMR discovered he was uncertified. He then resigned. AMR did not report the situation to police or prosecutors, who began investigating after 9NEWS uncovered Teel's actions.

"The practice of emergency medicine by uncertified individuals puts the sick and injured of Colorado at serious risk," said Attorney General John Suthers in a written statement at the time that charges were filed.

The AG's office only had jurisdiction over Teel's work that involved Medicaid. Eighty-five such patient care cases were investigated. AMR reimbursed Medicaid for Teel's work that was billed to taxpayers.

Investigators did not find any evidence in those select cases that Teel injured or killed a patient in his care.

AMR said it investigated all patient records involving Teel, but did not say if problems were found. The company has repeatedly refused to say if it would notify patients treated by the uncertified paramedic.

The Colorado Department of Health says Greenwood Village-based AMR should have checked Teel's documentation against state or national records, both of which are available online and would have revealed the forgery.

NREMT says Teel had an expired certification as an emergency medical technician (EMT), but never even took the test to become a paramedic.

Teel's attorney declined comment on the criminal case when charges were originally filed.