High-Ranking Member Of Enterprise Involved In Massive Medicare Fraud Sentenced In Manhattan Federal Court To 125 Months In Prison

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that ROBERT TERDJANIAN was sentenced yesterday to 125 months in prison for his role in a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme, among other offenses including extortion and immigration fraud. TERDJANIAN pled guilty to racketeering in December 2011 before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe, who also imposed yesterday’s sentence.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Robert Terdjanian and his many convicted co-conspirators were a cancer of fraud inside the Medicare system at a time of increasing scarcity in public resources. With his sentence, we continue our work to ensure that all those responsible for this reprehensible scheme are punished.”

According to the Indictment and other documents filed in this case:

From 2008 through 2010, TERDJANIAN participated in a nationwide Medicare scam that fraudulently billed Medicare for over $100 million. As part of the conspiracy, the defendant and others created “phantom clinic” health care providers that existed only on paper, had no doctors, and treated no patients. The total scheme involved at least 118 fraudulent Medicare providers that were located in approximately 25 states, and that submitted fraudulent bills for at least approximately $100 million, and received over $30 million in reimbursements from Medicare. TERDJANIAN directed the New York-based members of the enterprise in this scheme and other criminal conduct, including no-fault insurance fraud and access device fraud.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Gardephe sentenced TERDJANIAN, 40, of Brooklyn, New York, to three years of supervised release, and imposed a $100 special assessment. Judge Gardephe also ordered TERDJANIAN to forfeit $1,169.680.55.

Of the 28 defendants charged in U.S. v. Armen Kazarian, et al., 20 have now been sentenced. Four others have pled guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Charges have been dismissed against two defendants, and remain pending against two defendants. The charges pending against the two outstanding defendants are merely allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Mr. Bharara thanked the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, the New York City Police Department, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations for their work in the investigation.

The prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Burns, Arlo Devlin-Brown and Harris Fischman are in charge of the prosecution.