Two hospice operators in California have pleaded guilty on fraud and money laundering charges.The pair submitted false Medicare claims totalling close to $16 million.
The scheme involved several conspirators, all of whom have been convicted or have pleaded guilty. Petros Fichidzhyan, Juan Carlos Esparza and Karpis Srapyan allegedly operated four sham hospice companies, which were owned by “foreign nationals,” according to the U.S. Justice Department.
Two other defendants — Susanna Harutyunyan and Mihran Panosyan — were involved in laundering the funds the sham hospices fraudulently obtained from Medicare. The Justice Department has accused the five individuals of spending the money on real estate, vehicles and other goods and services.
“Srapyan and his co-defendants concealed the scheme by using foreign nationals’ personal identifying information to open bank accounts, submit information to Medicare, and sign property leases,” the Justice Department indicated in a statement. “They also misappropriated names and other identifying information of several doctors, two of whom were deceased, to fraudulently bill Medicare for purported hospice services. In total, Medicare paid the fake hospice companies nearly $16 million.”
Srapyan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and money laundering and is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 6. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Harutyunyan pleaded guilty to money laundering and is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 17; she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine their sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Harutyunyan faces deportation.
Co-defendant Petros Fichidzhyan previously pleaded guilty to health care fraud, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering. In May, Fichidzhyan was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Co-defendant Mihran Panosyan pleaded guilty to money laundering in June and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8. Co-defendant Juan Carlos Esparza’s change of plea hearing is scheduled for July 14.
The FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) investigated the case, which is being prosecuted by the Justice Department’s criminal division.
