Four people in New Hampshire have been charged for their alleged roles in a long-running, $3 billion healthcare fraud and money laundering operation, prosecutors announced this week.Fructoso de Jesus Gomez Agudelo, 76, of Nashua, is charged with wire fraud and accused of stealing another person's identity.Kakha Bendeliani, 48, and Goga Danelia, 31, both from the country of Georgia, were charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering by submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare.Bendeliani and Danelia allegedly laundered proceeds for a Russian transnational criminal organization that participated in the largest identity theft-driven healthcare fraud scheme ever prosecuted, authorities said.The investigation began after thousands of people, including the elderly and those with disabilities, contacted Medicare after receiving Explanation of Benefits (EOB) forms.The forms indicated they had received durable medical equipment (DME) that they never actually ordered or received.MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR HEALTHCARE FRAUD SCHEME INCLUDED GIVING PEOPLE 'UNNECESSARY' SKIN GRAFTS: DOJSurveillance showing Kakha Bendeliani at a financial institution during the conspiracy.
Bendeliani and three other defendants – Fructoso de Jesus Gomez Agudelo, 76; Goga Danelia, 31; Rima Gerges-Maalouf, 60 – are charged for their alleged roles in a billion dollar health care fraud operation.(Department of Justice)The criminal network orchestrated the multi-billion-dollar healthcare fraud and money laundering scheme that sought to steal from Medicare, other government-sponsored health insurance programs and private health insurance companies, prosecutors said."These charges expose the staggering scale of fraud and money laundering that Transnational Criminal Organizations are willing to inflict on our health care system and the people of New Hampshire," Erin Creegan, U.S.
attorney for the District of New Hampshire, said of the charges against Danelia and Bendeliani.Separately, Rima Gerges-Maalouf...