A Las Vegas Valley pharmacy that collected astir $100 cardinal successful Medicaid and Medicare payments since 2014 was secretly owned and operated by a mates with anterior convictions stemming from healthcare fraud, according to recently released instrumentality enforcement documents.
The Nevada lawyer general’s bureau said successful affidavits filed successful Las Vegas Justice Court that First Class RX Pharmacy, with outlets astatine 8846 S. Eastern Ave. and 3783 E. Desert Inn Road, collected much than $37 cardinal from Medicaid and immoderate $60 cardinal from Medicare since 2014. The concern did truthful contempt being secretly owned by Abel Serbera-Armas, 53, and Zulema Serbera, property unavailable.
An researcher with the lawyer general’s bureau said Serbera-Armas was convicted successful 2007 of healthcare fraud successful Florida for submitting mendacious claims to Medicare for aesculapian instrumentality that was either not prescribed oregon provided. His wife, Zulema Serbera, was convicted successful December 2022 successful Florida of conspiracy to perpetrate wellness attraction fraud and ligament fraud, investigators said.
Both Serbera-Armas and Zulema Serbera were placed connected a national database of individuals who were banned from participating successful national wellness attraction programs, authorities said.
A pistillate who answered the telephone astatine First Class RX Pharmacy connected Monday said nary 1 was instantly disposable to respond to a media inquiry.
Authorities said the ailment was filed aft an probe launched by the FBI. An researcher wrote successful the affidavit that paperwork repeatedly filed connected behalf of First Class RX Pharmacy listed others arsenic the owners of the concern erstwhile it was really owned by Serbera-Armas and Serbera.
On Sept. 8, the lawyer general’s bureau filed a transgression ailment charging Serbera-Armas with 15 felonies. They see mendacious claims to defraud Medicaid, perjury, theft much than $100,000 and conducting fiscal transactions with illegally obtained wealth oregon property. Serbera-Armas was arrested and booked astatine the Clark County Detention Center connected Sept. 15, past released connected his ain recognizance, according to online tribunal records.
Zulema Serbera was charged with 8 felonies including mendacious claims to defraud, perjury and theft much than $100,000. Two different radical are besides charged successful the case. They are identified successful tribunal records arsenic Sandra Martin and Trinh Ngoc Luu. Martin and Luu are charged with mendacious assertion to Medicaid, perjury, and theft worth $100,000 oregon greater. Court records bash not database defence attorneys for immoderate of the defendants.
Contact Glenn Puit astatine gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
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