Aleksandr Pikus, 48, of New York City, led a scheme to refer Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to providers at clinics in the city in exchange for kickbacks, according to an April 17 Justice Department news release. Providers submitted millions of dollars in fraudulent claims to Medicaid and Medicaid in relation to the scheme.
Mr. Pikus and his co-conspirators then laundered a portion of the proceeds through companies they controlled, according to the release. He failed to report that income to the IRS and used sham shell companies and fake invoices to conceal transactions.
He was convicted at a trial in 2019 and sentenced the following year, but the case was overturned on appeal, according to the release. On remand, a federal district court dismissed the indictment without prejudice. Mr. Pikus was reindicted in January 2023 and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to receive and pay healthcare kickbacks and conspiracy to defraud the United States by obstructing the lawful functions of the IRS.
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