A man from North Carolina has admitted to conspiring to launder over $3 million that was connected to a $100 million health care fraud scheme. This announcement was made by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina.
Chaudhry Shabbir Ahmed has confessed to falsely asserting ownership of two medical businesses that were established to support individuals facing disabilities, injuries, or chronic health conditions. These businesses are named Dune Medical Supply LLC in North Carolina and Prospect Health Solutions Inc. in Florida, as stated by the department.
According to the Department, Ahmed and another person utilized a fraudulent purchase agreement to create the illusion that Ahmed was the owner and operator of the companies. However, in reality, it was the co-conspirator who was in control of them.
Ahmed became the sole owner on Medicare documents, and as a result, Dune and Prospect took advantage of this by submitting over $100 million in fraudulent claims for durable medical equipment. These claims were made for items that beneficiaries neither received, requested, nor needed. The Department has confirmed this fraudulent activity.
During the period from April 2024 to August 2024, Medicare issued claim reimbursements totaling over $33 million. These funds were deposited into bank accounts registered under the names of Dune and Prospect, as stated by the department.
The department added that Ahmed accessed these accounts and withdrew significant amounts of fraud proceeds.
On June 30, 2024, Ahmed made a cash withdrawal of $400,000 from Prospect’s bank account. This was followed by another withdrawal of $500,000 on August 9, 2024, according to the department’s statement.
Ahmed has agreed to forfeit over $17.6 million, a Rolex watch, and cryptocurrency as part of his plea agreement in the ongoing investigation, according to the Department.
According to the department, Ahmed could potentially receive a sentence of up to five years in prison, along with three years of supervised release and monetary penalties.