Straw ‘owner’ of durable medical device company pleads guilty for role in $6M Medicare fraud conspiracy
A man in Massachusetts has pleaded guilty to money laundering in connection with a $6 million healthcare fraud scheme, where unnecessary knee and back braces were billed to Medicare for patients that did not need them.
Leo Anzivino Jr., 35, admitted to the charge in a federal court on Tuesday, leaving him to not face a potential sentence of up to ten years in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) revealed in a statement on the guilty plea.
According to authorities, Anzivino was a “straw or nominal owner” of Advanced Medical Supply Corp., a supposed durable medical device company that was actually run by his coconspirators.
The scheme involved the company sending more than $6 million in claims to Medicare to fulfill prescriptions for equipment, mainly orthopedic braces. While there were patients set to receive the braces, those beneficiaries had no knowledge in many cases that they were receiving the medical devices, as they did not need them.
Further, the DOJ said that doctors linked to the prescriptions that filled the orders never actually prescribed anything. To support the orders, Advanced Medical Supply would forge paperwork, making it seem as if the prescriptions were legitimate, based on the medical needs of patients.
Millions in reimbursement wasted
During the course of the scheme, Medicare paid out more than $3 million before investigators caught onto the scam in 2024. According to the DOJ, Anzivino was responsible for helping Advanced Medical Supply to cover its tracks, transferring funds from the company’s account to other businesses run by the coconspirators.
To make this possible, Anzivino falsified records submitted to a bank where he claimed to own more than 25% of the company, allowing him to control the bank account and to be listed as the owner of Advanced Medical Supply on Medicare paperwork, authorities said.
When a bank became suspicious, Anzivino would open other accounts at competing branches, allowing him to continue to wire money to the coconspirators’ operations, the DOJ added.
During the course of the scheme, confused patients would return the medical equipment they did not order, in some cases alleging that receiving the braces was part of a scam.
In 2024, the government seized approximately $353,768.29 in assets tied to the alleged scheme from bank accounts linked to Advanced Medical Supply, the DOJ said. Indictments came sometime after the money was confiscated, as the investigation into the conspiracy continued.
A hearing for Anzivino’s sentencing has been scheduled for Jan. 21, 2027.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.