Minnesota’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit charged seven health-care providers with Medicaid fraud totaling over $700,000 as part of a nationwide enforcement campaign coordinated with the United States Department of Justice.
According to filings:
Ahmed Agwa of Blaine is facing six felony theft charges for allegedly billing more than $94,000 for personal care services, including over 588 hours billed while he was out of the country, over 3,400 hours billed while the recipient was out of the country, and nearly 100 hours billed after the recipient died.
Shawki Elsaid of Blaine is facing eight theft and two identity theft charges after allegedly submitting over 1,600 fraudulent claims totaling more than $182,000, including billing for services while he or the recipient was out of the country and billing for services that were never provided.
Tremayne Lamar Jackson of St. Paul is facing seven felony theft charges for allegedly invoicing more than $125,000 for personal care, companion, and homemaker services he could not deliver, including claims filed during his nearly two-year tenure as a collegiate basketball coach in Kansas.
Fernando Navarro of Minneapolis is facing four felony theft charges after allegedly charging over $70,000 for personal care services provided to a child more than two years after the youngster went to California.
Christine Marie Pryor of Fargo, North Dakota, is facing six theft and six identity theft charges after reportedly invoicing more than $150,000 for psychotherapy and drug treatment services she was not licensed to give. Pryor allegedly utilized three certified clinicians’ credentials without their knowledge, billing for services to over 160 Medicaid customers.
Edward Sherrod of Columbia Heights is facing six felony theft charges after allegedly invoicing more than $60,000 for over 3,500 hours of personal care services that were never given, including time spent at another job or delivering services to a different customer in a different location.
Jessica Wavra of East Grand Forks is facing five theft charges after allegedly charging more than $29,000 for mental health and case management services that she did not perform.
The charges are part of National Health Care Fraud Takedown Day, in which the US Department of Justice and more than 40 state Medicaid fraud units took part. Nationally, 455 individuals from 45 states and territories are facing accusations in schemes involving more than $6.5 billion in bogus claims.
The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office is prosecuting all seven charges.
Since 2019, Minnesota’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has obtained over 340 convictions and recovered $90 million in judgments. Governor Tim Walz signed the Medical Assistance Protection Act in May, which provided the unit with greater resources and better legal powers to investigate fraud cases.
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