MN fraud: DOJ announces fraud charges against 15 people, suspect on run

Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald said a grand jury handed up an indictment charging 15 people for fraud that targeted over $90 million in taxpayer dollars.

The fraud targeted seven Medicaid programs, including Minnesota’s Housing Stabilization program, the autism program, Integrated Community Support, and the state’s Individualized Home Supports program.

Officials said one of the fraud suspects is on the run. Authorities say the suspect leaped from a fourth-story balcony as authorities attempted to make an arrest Thursday morning.

Authorities identified the suspect as Muhammad Omar. Court records show Omar is charged with a count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and four counts of health care fraud.

Prosecutors say he worked with another man, Ibrahim Bashir Abdi, to create North Home Health Care, and Omar opened another company, South Home Health Care. The companies were registered with Minnesota’s Housing Stabilization program.

Authorities say the men would falsify and inflate the number of service hours provided by North Home. Officials say some of the patients they were reportedly caring for were actually hospitalized and others were dead. Omar and Abdi pocketed $3.2 million based on those false claims. Omar received an additional $480,000 in claims from South Home.

The men sent some of the money overseas to buy property in Kenya.

The FBI is asking anyone with information on Omar’s whereabouts to call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

Abdi is facing the same counts as Omar in the case.