A foreign national, who may have entered the United States illegally, is charged with orchestrating an alleged multimillion-dollar health care fraud scheme.
Anar Rustamov, a 38-year-old man from Azerbaijan who previously lived in Sunnyvale, California, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday for allegedly submitting $90 million in bogus medical equipment claims.
‘Fraudsters are depriving vulnerable citizens of basic social services and stealing billions of your tax dollars, and bringing them to justice is exactly the kind of work we expect from the task force.’
The Department of Justice described the alleged scheme as “large-scale fraud targeting federal health care funds distributed through the Medicare Advantage program.” The agency stated that it “appears” Rustamov illegally entered the U.S.
Rustamov executed the alleged fraud through an entity that he created, according to the indictment. From October 2024 through June 2025, he allegedly submitted thousands of false claims to Medicare Advantage Organizations offering Medicare Part C benefit plans. The claims were submitted on behalf of unsuspecting beneficiaries for medical equipment, including blood glucose monitors and orthotic braces, the indictment stated.
The defendant hired a company to assist with registering his California corporation in 2024, according to court records. He leased office space, though it was “not a legitimate” Durable Medical Equipment provider office but was “used as a façade to receive mail,” the court filings read.
Rustamov allegedly sought over $90 million in bogus reimbursements for equipment that was neither provided, needed by patients, nor authorized by a medical provider.
RELATED: Haitian fraudster gets comeuppance from Trump judge
J. David Ake/Getty Images
Court filings revealed that Rustamov allegedly received at least $648,000 from Medicare Part C insurers.
According to the DOJ’s Friday announcement, Rustamov remains at large. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each violation. He was indicted on 14 charges, including health care fraud, aiding and abetting, and laundering of money instruments.
United States Attorney Craig Missakian, who announced the charges, stated, “When the administration declared a war on fraud, it meant to target exactly this kind of conduct. Rustamov participated in a scheme to steal nearly $100 million in taxpayer funds from a program intended to help those who truly need medical care.”
“Anyone who believes they can make easy money by defrauding such programs should know that we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and prosecute such fraud and abuse,” Missakian added.
RELATED: ‘Minnesota was big but California is even bigger’: Nick Shirley uncovers staggering alleged fraud right under Newsom’s nose
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
In mid-March, President Donald Trump established the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud to advise the president and coordinate efforts to combat widespread fraud, waste, and abuse of federal benefits. Vice President JD Vance serves as the task force’s vice chairman.
A spokesperson for Vance told Blaze News, “Fraudsters are depriving vulnerable citizens of basic social services and stealing billions of your tax dollars, and bringing them to justice is exactly the kind of work we expect from the task force.”
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Read the full article here
