Feds charge 4 people in a multimillion-dollar Amtrak health insurance scam

Four people today had been arrested Thursday on costs they participated in a multimillion-greenback rip-off to defraud Amtrak by bribing staff members of the rail company to post bogus promises to the Amtrak health coverage strategy, authorities stated.

Muhammad Mirza, 50, of Cedar Grove, Devon Burt, 49, of Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, and Hallum Gelzer, 43, of East Orange, were billed with conspiracy to commit health treatment fraud, in accordance to U.S. Legal professional for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger. Courtroom papers identified Mirza as a medical professional with workplaces in New Jersey and New York and record Burt as an Amtrak employee.

An acupuncturist, Punson Figueroa, 55, of Very long Island City, New York, was charged with 15 counts of health and fitness care fraud in the plan, according to court documents.

The 4 allegedly recruited Amtrak staff members from New Jersey and New York to permit Mirza, Figueroa, and other folks to use their clinical and insurance data to submit bogus statements.

“Mirza, Figueroa, and other individuals benefitted from this plan by obtaining payments from the Amtrak wellness treatment plan for services that had been never ever delivered or that were medically pointless,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Gelzer and Burt received hard cash in return for letting the health treatment suppliers to use their information and facts to submit fraudulent promises and for recruiting some others to the scam, in accordance to paperwork submitted in the circumstance.

An undercover investigator posing as an Amtrak worker satisfied with Figueroa at his New York office on June 17, 2021, authorities reported. Figueroa had the undercover agent signal his title about 30 periods for acupuncture and physical remedy purportedly obtained, but not to date the paperwork.

“Figueroa mentioned to the undercover agent that the undercover agent experienced superior coverage, and that Amtrak has really superior added benefits,” the assertion stated. “Figueroa submitted or caused to be submitted fake statements to Amtrak’s overall health care program indicating that the undercover agent had frequented vendors at minimum seven moments in May 2021, purportedly obtaining acupuncture and bodily therapy solutions.”

In truth, prosecutors mentioned the undercover agent only visited Figueroa’s workplace one other time, on July 29, 2021. Throughout the meeting, which was recorded with audio and video clip, Figueroa gave the undercover investigator an envelope loaded with $1,000, courtroom papers mentioned.

Figueroa employed the undercover agent’s personalized and insurance info to submit bogus promises to Amtrak’s health and fitness system in excess of 73 occasions, primary the strategy to shell out $31,840, in accordance to the documents.

Authorities explained the Amtrak well being care prepare compensated at minimum $9 million from statements connected to companies related to the fraud.

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Noah Cohen may well be achieved at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com.