MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – East Memphis gynecologist Dr. Sanjeev Kumar will serve 20 years in prison after a conviction on fraud and negligence charges.
A judge sentenced Kumar to a total of 240 months in jail on Wednesday, followed by two years of supervised release.
In January, a jury found Dr. Kumar, 45, guilty on 40 of his 46 federal charges, which include adulteration of single-use devices, misbranding of reprocessed single-use devices, adulteration of hysteroscopes cleared for reprocessing, and health care fraud.
In November 2025, a federal indictment accused Dr. Kumar of conducting unnecessary medical procedures, reusing disposable medical devices, not sterilizing equipment, and falsely billing insurance programs like Medicare and Medicaid at his women’s health clinic on Poplar Avenue.
That came after a judge dropped 17 of the original 36 counts, including allegations of illegal sex…
MANAGEMENT & CULTURE (THE “TONE AT THE TOP”)
Fraud thrives in “sloppy” environments where leadership ignores the rules.
- The Fraud Triangle: For fraud to occur, three elements must be present: Pressure (the need for money), Rationalization (thinking “I deserve this”), and Opportunity (weak controls). You can only control the Opportunity.
- Whistleblower Hotline: Provide an anonymous way for staff to report “odd behavior.” Most internal frauds are caught via tips, not audits.
- Background Checks: Conduct credit and criminal record checks for all employees in financial or data-sensitive roles.
- Annual Ethics Training: Make sure every staff member knows that the company has a Zero Tolerance policy toward “borrowing” from petty cash or fudging overtime.