Delores L. Knight, Healthcare Fraud, Ohio 2024

Twelve individuals have been charged in federal court in connection with a nationwide sweep targeting healthcare fraud violations, with a total of $28 million in money fraudulently obtained from Medicaid, Medicare or other insurance providers.

Locally, the charges represent more than $28 million in money fraudulently obtained from Medicaid, Medicare or other insurance providers. The charges stem from three unrelated cases.

Five people were named in an 18-count indictment for their roles in a $7 million home healthcare fraud conspiracy in which they provided forged documents and fraudulent forms to bill for services that were not provided.

The indictment names Delores L. Knight, 69, of Cleveland Heights; Theresa L. Adams, 42, of Twinsburg; Isaac R. Knight, 28, of Macedonia; Sonja N. Ferrrell, 43, of Cleveland, and Juliet L. Bonner, 60, of Cleveland.

All five worked in some capacity for Just Like Familee II, Inc., and Just Like Familee III, Inc., which the defendants incorporated in 2005 and 2006, respectively, to provide home health services for elderly and disabled clients.

The companies had locations at various times in Cleveland Heights, Twinsburg and Mentor, according to the indictment.

Prosecutors are seeking to forfeit all money that was illegally obtained, as well as a home at 1048 Morning Glory Drive in Macedonia owned by Delores L. Knight, and a home at 7915 Ridgetop Drive in Twinsburg owned by Theresa L. Adams.

Abdulazis Warsame, 50, of Cleveland; Yasin Warsame, 48, Amir Ahmed, 50, both of Columbus; George Epps, 42, of Cleveland, and Norma Lauer, 67, of Reynoldsburg, were also charged in a $3 million conspiracy involving a home health service company with offices in Cleveland.

Queen Ward, 64, of Cleveland Heights, was charged with one count of healthcare fraud while her daughter, Sharon Ward, 45, of Richmond Heights, was charged with one count each of healthcare fraud and aggravated identity theft related to the fraudulent billing of more than $18.1 million.

In a separate case, Queen Ward continued to bill Medicaid for her daughter's services, and continued to pay Sharon Ward, despite the fact that she had been told by the Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit that Sharon Ward was an excluded provider and had never been reinstated as an accredited provider.

Sharon Ward was previously convicted of Medicaid fraud, which precluded her participation in all federal health care programs for five years.

Heritage Home Healthcare Agency in Cleveland Heights was owned and operated by the Wards, despite Sharon Ward's exclusion from federal health care programs.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndoh/pr/twelve-charged-healthcare-fraud-violations-totaling-28-million