Christopher Frusci, a 33-year-old Staten Island man and Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus driver, admitted today to masterminding a $5 million health care fraud scheme that exploited his own employer’s insurance plan. Frusci pleaded guilty in Newark federal court to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, copping to a two-year run of submitting fraudulent claims for medically unnecessary compounded medications—including scar creams, pain creams, and metabolic supplements—through a shadowy network tied to a company referred to as “Company A.”
From May 2015 to May 2017, Frusci didn’t just exploit the system—he weaponized it. Recruited as a sales representative by Company A, he targeted fellow MTA employees with coverage for compounded meds, then paid them monthly cash bribes ranging from $100 to $1,500 to obtain prescriptions they didn’t need. Those prescriptions were funneled through telemedicine doctors on the take—physicians referred by Company A and paid to sign off without proper medical evaluation. The scam relied on greed, secrecy, and the blind trust built into employer-funded health plans.
But Frusci didn’t stop at recruitment. To maximize profits, he built a pyramid of fraud—bringing in other sales reps to expand the scam’s reach, all while skimming off the top. The MTA’s privately-funded health plan was a prime target, but other insurers were drained too. The result: $5 million in false claims flooding the system, money siphoned from health care funds meant for real patients with real needs.
Under his plea deal, Frusci must forfeit $724,448.73 in criminal proceeds and pay restitution of at least $5 million. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of either $250,000 or twice the gross gain from the offense—whichever is greater. Sentencing is set for June 4, 2018, before U.S. District Judge John Michael Vazquez in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito didn’t mince words: “Frusci admitted that he and others sought to defraud the MTA health plan and other insurers by recruiting the very people who enjoy that coverage, offering them cash bribes to get medications they didn’t need.” He called the crime a betrayal of public trust, warning others that exploiting health care for profit would not go unanswered.
The FBI, MTA Office of the Inspector General, and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General are still peeling back the layers. Inspector General Barry Kluger confirmed the investigation is ongoing: “Our investigation is ongoing to determine the extent to which additional MTA employees may have participated.” For now, Frusci’s fall stands as a stark reminder—when the system is gamed from within, the fallout hits us all.
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Key Facts
- State: New Jersey
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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