FBI captures $547M Medicare fraud fugitive

Khalid Ahmed Satary, who owned and operated several diagnostic laboratories, was arrested overseas and returned to the United States to face charges for a $547 million Medicare fraud scheme that spanned 2016 to 2019. Prosecutors allege he used deceptive marketing, telemarketing campaigns, patient recruiters, and telemedicine companies to generate orders for expensive, medically unnecessary cancer genetic tests billed to Medicare. The scheme reportedly involved millions in illegal kickbacks and bribes to doctors and recruiters, with Medicare claims totaling more than $547 million and actual reimbursements of about $134 million. Satary, originally indicted in 2019, was captured after years on the run and is the third arrest from the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters list in a span of weeks; authorities noted he violated pretrial release conditions in 2022. He faces multiple charges, including conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay kickbacks, and money laundering, carrying potential decades-long prison terms. Federal authorities also seized 16 bank accounts and restrained real estate as part of the case, with officials pledging to pursue fraudsters who exploit vulnerable patients and misuse taxpayer funds.