Press Release
☷Two Charged in $10 Million Medicare Fraud Kickback Scheme
Federal Bureau of Investigation ( By Press Release office)
Apr 29,2022
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Two charged in $10M Medicare fraud/kickback scheme HOUSTON – A home health agency owner and patient recruiter have been arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit , committing health care fraud and conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks , announced U . S . Attorney Jennifer B . Lowery . A federal grand jury in Houston returned the five - count indictment against Okorie Oko , 63 , Fresno , and Henry C . Dobbins , 57 , Houston , April 26 which was unsealed today upon their arrests . They are expected to make their initial appearance before U . S . Magistrate Judge Peter Bray today at 2 p . m . According to the indictment , Oko is the owner and Dobbins is a patient recruiter , respectively , of Elitte Healthcare and Service Inc . The indictment alleges that from 2015 to 2022 , Oko billed Medicare for home health care services that were never provided and created false medical records . Oko allegedly paid kickbacks to Dobbins , patients and marketers that Elitte employed to obtain new patient referrals . Oko also allegedly billed Medicare for home health care services provided to Elitte marketers while transporting and recruiting patients within the community . The indictment further alleges Oko and Elitte fraudulently billed more than $10 million to Medicare . If convicted , both face up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250 , 000 maximum fine . The Department of Health and Human Services ‐ Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and FBI . Special Assistant U . S . Attorney Kathryn Olson is prosecuting the case . An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct , not evidence . A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law .
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