'Minnesota has a fraud problem': Eden Prairie couple indicted in $15 million scheme
An Eden Prairie couple has been indicted in a $15 million medical billing fraud scheme they allegedly orchestrated.
The United States Department of Justice said Gabriel Alexander Luthor, a.k.a Gabriel Alexander Langford, 39, and Elizabeth Christine Brown, 42, allegedly engaged in the scheme that defrauded Medicare, Medicaid and other insurers by overbilling for neurofeedback therapy.
Luthor and Brown are each charged with six counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
According to federal court documents, the two allegedly started the scheme in 2018, overbilling medical insurance companies provided through Golden Victory Medical, LLC (GVM). The couple founded GVM that same year together.
One of the main medical services the company claimed to provide was neurofeedback therapy, which involves the medical provider placing sensors on a patient's scalp to obtain images of the patient's brain waves "for the purpose of indicating the effects of interventions meant to treat mental-health conditions," according to court documents.
However, the indictment states that Luthor and Brown fraudulently overbilled insurers by using numerous, inapplicable medical codes.
In total, the couple submitted "hundreds of thousands" of fake claims to insurers, many of which the insurers paid. Millions of dollars in fraudulent proceeds were transferred from separate bank accounts and ultimately kept by Luthor and Brown.
The funds were allegedly used to purchase a mansion in Eden Prairie and pay off their living expenses and other expenses of Luther's other girlfriends, who lived with the couple and also assisted in the fraud scheme, authorities say.
'Minnesota has a fraud problem,' said Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick. 'This case is yet another example of defendants defrauding government programs out of millions. This type of widespread fraud is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.'
The couple made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court earlier last week and were officially indicted on Thursday.
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