Tenth Guilty Plea Entered in $65 Million Brooklyn Medicaid Fraud Case
Key Takeaways
- •Ahsan Ijaz pleaded guilty on Oct. 2 to conspiracy to commit health care fraud tied to approximately $65 million in Medicaid claims, becoming the 10th defendant to enter a guilty plea in the Brooklyn investigation.
- •Prosecutors said Ijaz's businesses billed Medicaid for adult day care and home health services that were never provided, including instances where records showed services in New York while beneficiaries were outside the United States.
- •Cash kickbacks and bribes were used to recruit Medicaid recipients, and business entities laundered proceeds to fund the recruitment operation, which federal prosecutors alleged began around October 2017.
- •Co-defendant Zakia Khan received a 76-month prison term in September and was ordered to pay more than $56 million in restitution after prosecutors established roughly $64 million in fraudulent billing between 2017 and 2024.
- •Ijaz faces a statutory maximum of 10 years in federal prison, with sentencing scheduled for March 10, 2027, in the Eastern District of New York.
A Medicaid fraud case involving approximately $65 million in claims has produced another guilty plea in Brooklyn. Ahsan Ijaz, 29, pleaded guilty on Oct. 2 to conspiracy to commit health care fraud, according to federal prosecutors.
Ijaz owned two social adult day care centers and a home health care fiscal intermediary. Prosecutors said the businesses billed Medicaid — the jointly financed federal and state health insurance program that covers medical services for eligible low-income Americans — for services they did not provide while paying beneficiaries cash incentives to enroll.
According to STL.News reporting on the plea, Ijaz is the 10th defendant to plead guilty in the investigation. Sentencing is scheduled for March 10, 2027, and the charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in federal prison.
Cash Kickbacks Drove Recruitment
Ijaz owned Happy Family Social Adult Day Care Center Inc. and Family Social Adult Day Care Center Inc., both based in Brooklyn, alongside Responsible Care Staffing Inc., the home health care fiscal intermediary. Social adult day care centers offer older adults non-medical programming such as social activities, recreation, and supervision.
Prosecutors said cash kickbacks and bribes encouraged Medicaid recipients to enroll with the businesses. Claims then sought payment for purported adult day care and home health services that were never delivered. In some instances, beneficiaries were outside the United States when records stated they were receiving services in New York.
Federal prosecutors alleged the broader operation began around October 2017. Responsible Care participated in New York Medicaid's Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program, which allowed qualifying recipients to obtain assistance with daily activities and exercise greater control over their care providers. In that program, fiscal intermediaries such as Responsible Care handle billing and administrative work for participants who recruit and direct their own care.
Marketers recruited beneficiaries in exchange for kickbacks and bribes, prosecutors alleged. Business entities then laundered proceeds and generated cash used to finance payments that sustained the recruitment operation.
Earlier Sentencing Covered Different Claim Totals
Zakia Khan received a 76-month prison sentence in September, imposed by U.S. District Judge Natasha C. Merle. Khan had pleaded guilty in August 2025 to health care fraud conspiracy and a separate health care kickback conspiracy.
In Khan's case, prosecutors established approximately $64 million in fraudulent billing by Happy Family and Family Social between 2017 and 2024. Medicaid paid approximately $56 million on those claims. Khan was ordered to pay more than $56 million in restitution and to forfeit $5 million in proceeds, including two properties, cash and gold jewelry seized during a search.
The original indictment alleged approximately $68 million in Medicaid billing across the broader operation. That figure, Khan's totals and the approximately $65 million cited with Ijaz's plea describe different aspects of the case.
Investigators also obtained undercover images showing Khan paying illegal kickbacks inside the Happy Family office. Other released images showed recipients receiving cash in exchange for completing false attendance sheets.
Recruiters Elaine Antao, also known as Aleena, and Manal Wasef pleaded guilty in January to health care fraud conspiracy. Their plea agreements required forfeiture of approximately $1 million collectively, according to prosecutors. Prosecutors said the recruiters referred beneficiaries between approximately October 2017 and July 2024 in exchange for illegal payments, and also paid recipients kickbacks connected to Medicaid-funded services that were not provided.
Case Moves Toward Sentencing
The investigation involved the Health and Human Services inspector general, Homeland Security Investigations New York and the New York City Police Department. The case remains pending in the Eastern District of New York.
Ijaz's plea does not establish guilt for defendants who have not pleaded guilty or been convicted. At the March 10, 2027 sentencing, the judge will consider sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.
