Stone Under House Arrest After $3-Million Bond Is Accepted

Dr. Sergio C. Stone, one of three doctors at the center of UC Irvine’s fertility clinic scandal, was released from prison Tuesday night after spending almost two weeks in jail.

Stone, who faces 10 counts of mail fraud, walked out of the Santa Ana Detention Center after posting a $3-million bond.

He had been in the jail since April 25, when federal agents arrested him at his Villa Park home. He is now under house arrest there.

Stone, 54, was one of three doctors who ran UC Irvine’s now-closed Center for Reproductive Health. The university has accused Stone and two other doctors, Jose P. Balmaceda and Ricardo H. Asch, of stealing human eggs and embryos from scores of women and implanting them in others, some of whom gave birth.

The federal indictment, which does not address those allegations, charges that Stone filed false insurance claims stating that he was assisted by other licensed physicians while performing medical procedures, when he was working alone or with trainees. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Stone is the only person charged so far by a federal grand jury investigating the clinic’s operation. But prosecutors have said in court that their investigation was continuing.

After a seven-month state and federal investigation of the suspected egg-swapping scandal, Balmaceda and Asch sold their Orange County homes and left for Latin America.

Stone’s release from custody was held up last week when prosecutors questioned the amount of collateral that he and his friends were putting up to secure the bail. Prosecutors alleged that Stone, a naturalized U.S. citizen, was planning to liquidate his assets and escape to his native Chile.

After a court hearing last week, U.S. District Judge Gary L. Taylor ruled that Stone would be required to turn over to the court as part of his bail $475,000 of the $500,000 he wired to Chile last year. The doctor also was ordered to sign guarantees that he would not sell his remaining assets, which federal prosecutors say are worth more than $2 million.

Six of the doctor’s friends and relatives put up their properties as collateral for Stone’s bail. Some of them also agreed to pay $1 million to the court if Stone jumps bail.

While awaiting trial, scheduled for June 18, Stone also must wear an electronic surveillance anklet.

“This is an abundance of caution,” said Al Stokke, Stone’s lawyer. “There has been no indication that he would leave. He is thrilled to be back with his family and friends.”