Pharmacist Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Fraud Scheme

Ademola Adebayo was convicted on January 11^th, 2019 of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. His sentence included 120 months (10 years) in prison followed by three years of supervised release and an order to pay $3.2 million in restitution and $1.4 million in forfeiture.

Adebayo was involved in a $121 million-dollar scheme that submitted false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, TRICARE, and private insurance companies. The claims involved compounded pain and scar creams, as well as other prescription medications that were either not medically necessary, never provided or both.

Adebayo was originally the pharmacist at A to Z Pharmacy in New Port Richey, FL. When the fraud was discovered in 2014 and plan contracts terminated with A to Z Pharmacy, Adebayo became a straw owner of Havana Pharmacy & Discount in Miami, which was used to continue the fraud scheme.

Eight other defendants have also been convicted. Others involved in the scheme admitted to paying kickbacks for prescriptions (and patient information) and physicians signing prescriptions for patients they never saw. All were sentenced to prison from one to fifteen years.

PAAS reminds pharmacies to have comprehensive Fraud, Waste, & Abuse Compliance policies and training. Contact PAAS today for more information on our customized Fraud, Waste, & Abuse and HIPAA Compliance Program at (608) 873-1342 or info@paasnational.com.