A Florida nursing assistant was sentenced yesterday to nine years in prison and two years of supervised release for his role in an $11.4 million health care fraud and wire fraud conspiracy in which hundreds of Medicare beneficiaries were sent thousands of orthotic braces they did not need. Cruz was also ordered to pay $3,712,345.70 in restitution and $724,871 in forfeiture.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Christian “Chris” Cruz, 45, of Pompano Beach, Florida, owned and operated a durable medical equipment (DME) supplier based in Florida through which he submitted millions of dollars in false claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary orthotic braces.
Cruz and his co-conspirator paid illegal kickbacks and bribes to obtain signed doctors’ orders. They used these orders to ship orthotic braces to Medicare beneficiaries nationwide and then claim payment from…
Be skeptical of “Work from Home” offers that require you to receive money into your personal account and transfer it elsewhere, as this makes you a “Money Mule” in a money-laundering operation.