A former San Diego teacher has pleaded guilty to her role in a massive Medicare fraud scheme that bilked the program out of nearly $51 million. Jeanett Valenzuela Ayub, 51, of Chula Vista, entered her plea in federal court on Friday in San Diego.
According to her plea agreement, Valenzuela and her co-conspirators operated multiple durable medical equipment (DME) companies that sold orthotics to Medicare beneficiaries. They paid unlawful kickback payments to sham marketing companies that provided bogus prescriptions for the DME.
The prescriptions were signed by physicians who had no legitimate doctor-patient relationship with the beneficiary, had not conducted a legitimate medical evaluation, and had not impartially determined that the beneficiary actually needed the DME. When agents interviewed Medicare beneficiaries, they confirmed that they never spoke with a doctor, were never examined by a doctor related to the prescribed DME, and were not familiar with the prescribing doctor.
Valenzuela admitted that she and her co-conspirators laundered at least $14 million of Medicare proceeds and paid $3.7 million in unlawful kickbacks. The scheme netted her and her co-conspirators approximately $20 million.
Valenzuela’s brother, Fernando Valenzuela Ayub, previously pleaded guilty to the same offense and is pending sentencing. When he was arrested in December 2024, Valenzuela absconded to Tijuana. She was eventually detained in August 2025 in the Dominican Republic after she left Mexico on a family vacation.
Valenzuela is scheduled to be sentenced on July 24, 2026, at 9 a.m. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for her role in the money laundering conspiracy. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Blanca Quintero of the Southern District of California.
The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.
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Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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