LYNCHBURG, Va. – The grimy details of a healthcare fraud conspiracy have been laid bare as Carolyn Bryant-Taylor, 61, of Clinton, Maryland, has pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to defraud federal healthcare programs.
Bryant-Taylor’s crime, which she admitted in court yesterday, is just one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. If sentenced to the maximum penalty, she could spend up to a decade behind bars.
The charges were filed against Bryant-Taylor and her co-conspirators in March 2025. Among them are Kafomdi “Josephine” Okocha, 48; Samuel Okocha, 50; Shekita Gore (a.k.a. Shekita Steele), 38; Elizabeth Ilome, 41; and Eno Utuk, 47, all accused of various roles in the fraudulent scheme.
Court documents reveal that Bryant-Taylor, along with Josephine Okocha and Samuel Okocha, were at the helm of 1st Adult N Pediatric Healthcare Service. This Medicaid-enrolled agency provided a range of services throughout Virginia. Meanwhile, Gore served as director of nursing, with Utuk and Ilome employed to offer nursing and personal care.
Together, they plotted to submit fraudulent claims to Medicaid by falsifying records and documentation. Between 2017 and 2023, the conspirators arranged payments to patients’ parents or guardians in exchange for blank, signed nursing notes that were later used to bill Medicaid for non-existent services.
This despicable scheme was finally cracked by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Virginia Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, with support from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Jones and Laura Taylor are now prosecuting this case with Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Terry, a Senior Assistant Attorney General.
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Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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