ALLEGED MEDICARE FRAUD RING BUSTED IN LA AREA

San Francisco Chronicle, CA
April 25 2006

Five members of a Russian-Armenian organized crime ring have been
indicted for allegedly bilking Medicare of more than $20 million,
authorities said.

The group operated medical clinics and laboratories in Los Angeles,
Glendale and Pasadena that paid marketers for patient referrals and
billed Medicare for tests that were unnecessary or were not done,
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Searby wrote in court papers. The
alleged fraud took place between 1997 and 2005.

The defendants, who were indicted Thursday, have been charged with
conspiracy, health care fraud, Medicare kickbacks, making false
statements to Medicare and money laundering.

The group allegedly was led by Konstantin Grigoryan, 56, of Altadena,
a former colonel in the Soviet army; his wife, Mayya Leonidovna
Grigoryan, 54; the Grigoryans’ son-in-law, Eduard Gershelis, 34, of
Los Angeles; Mayya Grigoryan’s brother-in-law, Aleksandr Treynker,
48, of Canoga Park; and Haroutyun Gulderyan, 36, of Tujunga.

The Grigoryans and Gershelis have been in federal custody since their
March 21 arrests. Gulderyan and Treynker have been released on bond.

The five are scheduled to appear in court June 13.

Gershelis’ attorney, Jerome Mooney, described the episode as “a very
unfortunate circumstance.” Attorneys for the other defendants did
not return phone calls from the Los Angeles Daily News seeking comment.

Last December, three operators of an Orange County clinic pleaded
guilty to charges they bilked insurers out of nearly $15 million by
operating on healthy people, authorities said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress