A group of three individuals from the Lawton area, involved in a health care fraud scheme, have been handed down sentences to serve more than 12 years in federal prison, collectively. As reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Oklahoma in a recent press release, the trio was involved in defrauding TRICARE, the military health care program, for services that were not rendered, amounting to ill-gotten gains close to $3 million.
Jimmie Mathews, 41, and Nathan Mathews, 42, along with Amber Delger, 55, were implicated in a fraudulent billing operation dating back to 2016. Emerald Lane Therapy Services and Stars & Stripes Therapy, both owned by the Mathews brothers, billed TRICARE for multiple appointments that beneficiaries did not attend—sometimes months in advance. This scheme was revealed to have billed more than $7 million to the health program.
As stated in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Oklahoma press release, U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester emphasized the gravity of exploiting such critical programs: "These defendants exploited programs intended to provide critical benefits to our nation’s military, veterans, and their families". Troester further highlighted his commitment to protecting taxpayer-funded institutions and ensuring the integrity of funds meant for those who serve our country.
In what U.S. District Judge Jodi W. Dishman described as an "egregious and far-reaching" fraud, Nathan Mathews was sentenced to serve 87 months in federal prison with a subsequent two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution of $1,410,255.66. Jimmie Mathews will serve 42 months, followed by three years of supervised release, with a restitution payment of $632,026.43. Meanwhile, Delger received a 26-month sentence back in January of this year, with two years supervised release and restitution totaling $653,269.00.
This case is a result of vigilant investigation by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service of the United States Department of Defense, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D.H. Dilbeck. Actions such as these, according to Acting Special Agent in Charge Chad Gosch, are pivotal in preventing schemes that compromise the welfare of military healthcare beneficiaries and waste valuable tax dollars. The sentences aim to serve as a deterrent, signaling that health care fraud is not to be tolerated and will result in serious consequences.
