LAWFUEL – The Legal Newswire – R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Miami Field Office, and Melody Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Atlanta Regional Office announced today’s sentencing of defendants Juan A. Zaragoza and Angel Hernandez Quesada in connection with a $1.8 million health care fraud and money laundering scheme. United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan sentenced Juan A. Zaragoza to a 57 months in prison and Angel Hernandez Quesada to 54 months in prison term for their respective roles in a Medicare fraud and money laundering conspiracy
According to court records, during the summer of 2006, both men served as “straw” owners of a Miami durable medical equipment company (“DME”) named S.Y.C. Home Medical Equipment, Inc. During that time, Medicare paid S.Y.C. approximately $1.8 million as a result of fraudulent claims for DME items that were neither prescribed by doctors nor delivered to Medicare patients.
In addition the Medicare fraud charges, both men pled guilty to charges of illegally laundering the fraud proceeds through the cashing checks or withdrawing cash from S.Y.C’s corporate bank accounts.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney William J. Parente Jr.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
