TYLER, Texas — A 44-year-old woman, formerly of Port Harcourt, Nigeria, has been sentenced to federal prison for a health care fraud scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.
Vivian Yusuf pleaded guilty on Sep. 17, 2014, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and was sentenced to 87 months in federal prison today by U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider.
According to information presented in court, from June 2007 to May 2009, Yusuf, the former owner of Ivy Health Care Supply, a Houston-area medical supply company, and Aghaegbuna “Ike” Odelugo, James Reese, and others carried out a scheme to defraud Medicare through the marketing of power wheelchairs and accessories, as well as “ortho kits,” which primarily consisted of a bag of orthotic items, including braces, wraps, and supports, and a heat lamp or heat pad.