Additional Coverage:
- Hospital boss stole $26 million to buy outrageous luxury goods, including gold Cybertruck (themirror.com)
A Texas man has been found guilty of orchestrating a $26 million fraud scheme that targeted taxpayer funds intended for healthcare services for U.S. service members. Kevin Curry used the stolen money to finance a lavish lifestyle, including purchasing a $100,000 gold-plated Cybertruck.
On Friday, a federal jury convicted Curry on nine charges related to allegations that his mental health clinics billed the military’s healthcare program, Tricare, for unnecessary or unprovided therapy services, according to the Department of Justice. Curry operated three clinics-in Fort Worth and Plano, Texas, and Fort Walton Beach, Florida-that collectively submitted over $26 million in fraudulent claims to Tricare. Approximately $17 million of this amount was paid out.
“This defendant exploited a critical healthcare program serving active-duty service members and their families, diverting taxpayer dollars to bankroll personal luxuries ranging from hotel stays to a casino-themed party and even a gold-plated Tesla Cybertruck,” stated Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the DOJ’s National Fraud Enforcement Division. “Such conduct is an affront to the military community and the American public.”
Federal prosecutors detailed that Curry disbursed more than $5.5 million in kickbacks to active-duty service members, veterans, and their families to persuade them to undergo transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy-a treatment they neither needed nor likely qualified for. Curry allegedly posed as a medical doctor and used the credentials of legitimate physicians to submit false claims to Tricare. He also instructed employees to falsify medical records to conceal the scheme.
Attorney Ryan Raybould condemned Curry’s actions, saying, “Kevin Curry shamelessly preyed on the trust of service members, veterans, and their families, siphoning millions from TRICARE through lies and coercion. He fabricated medical records, stole doctors’ identities, and clogged the system with fraudulent claims, all while lining his pockets with kickback-tainted money.”
Curry was convicted on three counts each of healthcare fraud, illegal healthcare kickbacks, and monetary transactions involving criminally derived property. He now awaits sentencing and faces up to 10 years in prison for each count.
“This conviction sends an unmistakable message that those who manipulate our military community and defraud federal healthcare programs will face the full force of federal prosecution,” Raybould added.