Fraudster's gains returned to US government

More than $650,000 of money confiscated from a fraudster who had banked it in Jersey has been returned to the American government.

The Attorney General has returned $667,000 (£495,000) to the US Department of Justice from a bank in Jersey where it had been deposited by Gustavo Geraldes, who committed medical fraud in the US during the Covid pandemic.

Geraldes ran a kickback scheme in which telemedicine providers authorised unnecessary genetic tests at laboratories he part-owned.

After his conviction in April 2022, a judgement to surrender $2.64m (£1.96m) of proceeds traceable to his crime was made, and funds held in Jersey have contributed towards this total, the Law Officers' Department said.

Geraldes' scheme exploited temporary amendments to telehealth restrictions enacted during the Covid pandemic, which had been intended to make it easier for Medicare recipients to have care at home.

Medicare is a federal healthcare program which provides free or below-cost health care benefits to many Americans.

The Law Officers' Department transferred $667,000 to the US authorities to offset the losses incurred by Medicare.

Attorney General Matthew Jowitt said: "The case is a further example of the highly effective working relationship between the two jurisdictions in fulfilling the purpose of the confiscation regime."

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