A U.S. jury convicted a manager for his role in a $6 million bribery scheme in which marketers were paid to refer Medicaid-insured children to the Texas dental practice where he was employed, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
Ifeanyi Ozoh, 54, who had worked as a manager at Floss Family Dental Care in Houston, was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to pay and receive healthcare kickbacks and two counts of payment of kickbacks to marketers. Jurors reached a verdict after deliberating for one hour following a three-day trial, according to a press release dated February 14 from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.
Ozoh, who is one of three employees arrested for their reported roles in the scheme, is scheduled to be sentenced in May and faces up to 25 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
At his trial, jurors heard testimony that Ozoh paid marketers between $20 and $100 for each Medicaid-insured child referred to Floss. Marketers testified that Ozoh slipped them cash secretly, sometimes leaving their illegal kickbacks on top of a vending machine located down the hall from the clinic.