NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A South Windsor dentist waved her right to trial and pleaded guilty in New Haven court on Wednesday to conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickback scheme, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Lakshmi Bethi, 48, has been a licensed dentist in Connecticut since 2013 and has owned dental practices in New Haven and North Haven, according to court documents and statements.
By pleading guilty, Bethi admits to conspiring with individuals such as Jeffrey Malave, who prosecutors say agreed to recruit Medicaid beneficiaries to attend dental appointments with Bethi for dental services she then billed to Connecticut Medicaid.
According to prosecutors, Bethi agreed to pay kickbacks to recruiters in exchange, who then passed on some of the kickbacks to the patients as an incentive to attend the dental appointments.
Between 2016 and 2023, Bethi paid the patient recruiters over $360,000 in kickbacks, and Connecticut Medicaid reimbursed Bethi around $2.2 million for services rendered to patients recruited using kickbacks, prosecutors say.
Conspiracy to violate the federal anti-kickbacks statute could land Bethi in prison for up to five years. Bethi also has agreed to forfeit $500,000 as part of her plea. She is released on bond; her sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
Prosecutors say the investigation discovered that Malave recruited Medicaid patients as well for other dentists and dental practices. A federal grand jury in Bridgeport returned an indictment on March 7 charging Hamed Ghorbani-Moghaddam, a Southington dentist who practiced in Bridgeport, with one count of conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute and five counts of offering and paying healthcare kickbacks. Ghorbani-Moghaddam, 46, is currently being sought by law enforcement.
Regarding Ghorbani-Moghaddam, the U.S. Attorney says that an indictment is not proof of guilt and that charges are only allegations; a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Prosecutors say the matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Connecticut Chief State’s Attorney’s Office, the Connecticut Attorney General’s Office and the Connecticut Department of Social Services.
Those who suspect health care fraud can report it by calling 1-800-HHS-TIPS.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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