The United States government has declared Nigerian man Ezechukwu Joshua Ohaka, 57, wanted over an alleged Medicare fraud scheme in which he and his co-conspirators reportedly obtained $1.08 million in illicit proceeds.
According to a statement by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Ohaka, through his Houston-based company, Luant & Odera, Inc., allegedly submitted more than $3.1 million in fra¥dulent Medicare claims for durable medical equipment, including power wheelchairs, motorised scooters and wheelchair accessories.
The equipment was allegedly either medically unnecessary or never provided to beneficiaries. Investigators also found that some beneficiaries received cheaper, inferior wheelchairs compared to the more expensive equipment billed to the government.
Authorities said some of the beneficiaries had not consulted doctors, lacked the prescriptions required by Medicare or failed to meet the programme’s medical necessity criteria.
The alleged scheme targeted Medicare beneficiaries who had lived in areas affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Some beneficiaries were reportedly recruited to participate in the fraudulent claims, with some receiving kickbacks.
The health department said Ohaka falsely presented himself as a doctor, referring to himself as “Dr. Joshua Ohaka,” while targeting the beneficiaries.
The statement noted that a federal indictment accused Ohaka and his alleged co-conspirators of submitting more than $3.1 million in fraudulent claims, with the “gross proceeds of the fraud” estimated at approximately $1.08 million.
Meanwhile, another Nigerian, 57-year-old Tayo Muyiwa Olukoya, also known as “Uncle,” is wanted by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
According to the DEA, Olukoya is wanted in the Southern District of Indiana over an alleged conspiracy to possess controlled substances with the intent to distribute them and to distribute the substances.
He is described as a Black male with brown eyes, standing 177 centimetres tall and weighing 99 kilogrammes.