Dozens of current or former Russian diplomats and their spouses were among 49 individuals who were charged in a complaint of massive fraud to the tune of $1.5 million, ass announced at federal court in Manhattan on Thursday, The Associated Press reported.
The diplomats reportedly "enjoyed luxury vacations and spent tens of thousands of dollars on concert tickets, fine clothing and helicopter rides as they lied about their incomes to get the U.S. government to pay their health care bills with money meant for the poor, federal prosecutors said on Thursday," The AP also reported.
The complaint said that Medicaid lost about $1.5 million in the scheme, which began in 2004.
"Diplomacy should be about extending hands, not picking pockets in the host country. It is a shameful and systemic corruption," said U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara at a Manhattan news conference.
"We are bewildered by making the information about accusations of alleged tax and other offenses by Russian embassy personnel available to the media. It's not clear why the relevant agencies have considered it possible to make these accusation public before discussing them through diplomatic channels," said Sergei Ryabkov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister in remarks carried by the Interfax news agency.
Russian officials at the United Nations did not immediately comment, as defendants reportedly included employees of Russia's consulate in New York, as well its mission to the U.N., according to the criminal complaint.
Charges include "conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to steal government funds and make false statements relating to health care matters," according to the complaint.
The specifics "allege that the defendants submitted fraudulent applications for medical benefits for pregnancies, births and care for young children. Federal prosecutors said the diplomats qualified for Medicaid benefits by under-reporting their income, often by tens of thousands of dollars," The AP also reported.
FBI agent Jeremy Robertson described an 18-month investigation, "addressing that investigators discovered a pattern of falsified applications."
The criminal complaint said that thousands of dollars were spent on jewelry, designer clothing and electronic devices.
"Authorities said they also bought concert tickets, robotic cleaning devices and chartered helicopters," according to news reports.
