A Florida nursing assistant has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar health care fraud scheme that targeted hundreds of Medicare beneficiaries across the United States.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Christian “Chris” Cruz, 45 years old, of Pompano Beach, Florida, was sentenced on April 13, 2026, to nine years in prison followed by two years of supervised release.
Cruz was also ordered to pay $3,712,345.70 in restitution and $724,871 in forfeiture.
Prosecutors said Cruz owned and operated a durable medical equipment supplier in Florida that submitted millions of dollars in false claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary orthotic braces. The fraudulent scheme totaled approximately $11.4 million.
According to court documents and trial evidence, Cruz and a co-conspirator paid illegal kickbacks and bribes to obtain signed doctors’ orders. These orders were then used to ship orthotic braces to Medicare beneficiaries nationwide, including individuals who neither requested nor needed the equipment. The company then billed Medicare for reimbursement.
Authorities also said Cruz falsely claimed he was the sole owner of the company, concealing the involvement of his co-conspirator, who is a convicted felon.
Investigators further revealed that Cruz received several hundred thousand dollars from the scheme, which he deposited into his personal bank account. He frequently withdrew cash on consecutive days at different bank branches in South Florida, often in amounts just under the $10,000 reporting threshold.
After a six-day trial in January 2026, a federal jury convicted Cruz of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, four counts of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to make false statements relating to health care matters, and three counts of structuring.
