Windsor pharmacist among 4 sentenced in $13M Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance fraud case

A Windsor pharmacist, among four pharmacy owners, will be behind bars for seven years in a $13 million insurance fraud case.

A Windsor man is one of four pharmacy owners sentenced for his role in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Pharmacist Tarek Fakhuri, of Windsor, was sentenced on Jan. 13 to seven years in prison; pharmacist Raef Hamaed, of Maricopa County, Arizona, was sentenced on Jan. 8 to 10 years in prison; pharmacist Ali Abdelrazzaq, of Macomb County, Michigan, was sentenced on Jan. 15 to two years in prison; and pharmacist Kindy Ghussin, of Greene County, Ohio, was sentenced to five years and five months in prison.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Hamaed, Fakhuri, Ghussin, and Abdelrazzaq billed Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for prescription medications that they did not dispense at five pharmacies they owned and operated.

The pharmacies were Eastside Pharmacy, Harper Drugs, and Wayne Campus Pharmacy in Michigan, and Heartland Pharmacy and Heartland Pharmacy 2 in Ohio. The defendants collectively caused over $13 million of loss to Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.

On Sept. 5, 2024, a federal jury convicted Hamaed, Fakhuri, Ghussin, and Abdelrazzaq of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. The jury also convicted Fakhuri of one count of health care fraud. Hamaed was sentenced for his role in the conspiracy at all five pharmacies; Fakhuri was sentenced for his role in the conspiracy at Harper Drugs, Wayne Campus Pharmacy, and Heartland Pharmacy; Ghussin was sentenced for his role in the conspiracy at Wayne Campus Pharmacy and both Heartland pharmacies; and Abdelrazzaq was sentenced for his role in the conspiracy at Wayne Campus Pharmacy.

The FBI Detroit Field Office and Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector investigated the case.