Dr. Emmanuel Ayodele, Power Wheelchair Scheme, California 2023

Los Angeles Doctor and Patient Recruiter Plead Guilty to Power Wheelchair Scheme

A Los Angeles-area doctor and patient recruiter pleaded guilty today for their roles in a power wheelchair fraud scheme that defrauded Medicare of over $10.1 million.

Dr. Emmanuel Ayodele, 65, of Los Angeles, and Alejandro Maciel, 43, of Huntington Park, California, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge George Wu in the Central District of California to one count of health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, respectively.

The plea was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. of the Central District of California; Glenn R. Ferry, Special Agent in Charge for the Los Angeles Region of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG); Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office; and Joseph Fendrick, Special Agent in Charge of the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse.

Ayodele admitted that he defrauded Medicare by participating in a power wheelchair fraud scheme with the operators of fraudulent durable medical equipment (DME) supply companies. According to court documents, DME suppliers provided Ayodele with patients recruited by street-level patient recruiters or “marketers,” who illegally solicited people with Medicare benefits for power wheelchairs and other DME that the people did not need.

Maciel admitted that he was one of these marketers. He approached people at their homes, swap meets, grocery stores, and other locations, and made various misrepresentations to the people about his true identity and Medicare. Maciel admitted that these misrepresentations allowed him to gain the trust of Medicare beneficiaries and convince them to provide him with their Medicare billing and personal information, which Maciel, Ayodele, and their co-conspirators used to defraud Medicare.

Ayodele admitted that he owned one of these fraudulent medical clinics, Beth Medical Clinic, which he operated in Los Angeles. He admitted that, at Beth Medical, he wrote medically-unnecessary prescriptions for power wheelchairs and DME. Ayodele admitted he knew that the DME supply companies used the medically-unnecessary prescriptions and documents that he wrote to submit claims to Medicare for medically-unnecessary power wheelchairs and DME.

Maciel admitted that his profit from the scheme came in the form of illegal kickbacks paid to him for every person whose Medicare billing and personal information his co-conspirators successfully used to bill Medicare for power wheelchairs or other items of DME. According to court documents, once his co-conspirators successfully billed Medicare, Maciel delivered the power wheelchairs and other DME to the people whom he recruited. During these deliveries, Maciel observed that the people could walk, and that they did not have a legitimate need for the wheelchairs and other DME.

As a result of their conduct, Ayodele and Maciel admitted that they and the owners and operators of Bonfee, Lutemi Medical Supplies, and other fraudulent DME companies submitted and caused to be submitted over $10,132,178 in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare. Ayodele and Maciel admitted that Medicare paid Bonfee and the other DME supply companies over $10.1 million in false claims.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Michael Ferrara of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Kramer of the Central District of California. The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), the FBI, and the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse.

Defendant Information:

Dr. Emmanuel Ayodele, 65, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty to one count of health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Ayodele admitted to defrauding Medicare of over $10.1 million.

Alejandro Maciel, 43, of Huntington Park, California, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. Maciel admitted to participating in a power wheelchair fraud scheme that defrauded Medicare of over $10.1 million.

City and State: Los Angeles, California

Exact Date: Not specified

Sentence or Outcome: Ayodele and Maciel are scheduled to be sentenced on April 24, 2024. Ayodele faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Maciel faces a maximum of 5 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Dollar Amounts: Over $10,132,178 in false and fraudulent claims were submitted to Medicare. Medicare paid over $10.1 million in false claims.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/los-angeles-area-doctor-and-patient-recruiter-plead-guilty-participating-power-wheelchair