Susan Engonwei Tingwei, 44, of Silver Spring, Md., a licensed attorney, pleaded guilty today to defrauding the D.C. Medicaid program of $131,656 through a scheme involving falsified personal care service claims. The scam ran from August 2016 to September 2018, during which Tingwei submitted 118 false timesheets for services she never rendered — often while attending law school in Baltimore.
Tingwei admitted in court documents that while employed by two D.C.-based home health agencies, she was responsible for assisting Medicaid beneficiaries with daily living tasks like bathing, dressing, and eating. Instead of providing care, she filed fraudulent timesheets claiming full shifts — including one day in April 2017 when she allegedly worked from 7 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., despite University of Maryland law school records showing her key card swiped in at 5:30 p.m. and out at 9:29 p.m. Cell phone data placed her device in Baltimore from 8:03 a.m. to 9:31 p.m. that same day.
Charged with health care fraud — a felony carrying up to 10 years in prison — Tingwei faces a recommended sentence of 10 to 16 months under federal guidelines. She has agreed to pay full restitution: $131,656.12. U.S. District Judge Carl J. Nichols set sentencing for February 22, 2022.
Tingwei earned her Master of Laws from the University of Maryland in May 2017 and was admitted to the New York State Bar in February 2018 — credentials she used while perpetrating the fraud. Authorities say she continued billing Medicaid even as she pursued her legal career, exploiting gaps in oversight within the personal care aide billing system.
This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, and the D.C. Office of the Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Prosecutors emphasized their ongoing crackdown on Medicaid fraud, noting Tingwei is the eleventh personal care aide since August 2018 to plead guilty in federal court in D.C. Six were sentenced to 13 months; one received 15.
The government is urging the public to report health care fraud. Tips can be submitted to the HHS Office of Inspector General at (800) 447-8477 or the D.C. Office of the Inspector General at (800) 274-8477. Authorities warn that fraud drains critical public resources — and that no professional license shields criminals from prosecution.
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Key Facts
- State: Washington DC
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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