State investigators have accused 15 Alaskans and businesses of filing more than $1.8 million in fraudulent Medicaid claims in five separate cases.
The criminal cases filed in June are part of a broader nationwide effort to crack down on fraud in the jointly funded federal and state program, state officials said.
The defendants include managers and proprietors of Anchorage assisted living homes, a Soldotna dentist and individuals paid by Medicaid for helping to take care of ailing relatives. All were charged with felonies.
The charges go well beyond innocent mistakes and poor record-keeping, said the head of the Alaska Department of Law’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Heather Nobrega.
“Medicaid is not an unlimited amount of money,” she said in an interview. “It's important for the Medicaid Fraud Unit to figure out who these individuals are who are not abiding by the regulations and are choosing profit over patients.”
Attorneys for the defendants either did not respond to requests for comment or declined to comment.
Cases charge assisted living homes, dentist and individuals with fraud
The largest case by dollar amount is against Graystone Assisted Living Home LLC, its owner Amie Sanneh and her niece and administrator Sainabou Faal.
The three allegedly billed Medicaid for more than $1.1 million in claims between 2022 and 2025 without proper documentation. Investigators started looking into the Anchorage group home in 2025 after a tip from another state agency investigating suspected neglect following the death of one of its patients, according to court filings.
The second-largest case totaled more than $600,000 in allegedly fraudulent claims from businesses owned by Kyle and Molly Bates, according to the charges. The couple owns three facilities in Anchorage and Chugiak: Heritage Assisted Living Home LLC, Heritage Home LLC and Alaska Life Group Homes LLC. Investigators also charged an administrator, Peyton Love. All are accused of billing without documentation, and in some cases billing for services that weren’t provided.
A judge issued an arrest warrant for Molly and Kyle Bates after investigators said they were concerned the couple might flee the country. Court records indicate they have not been arrested.
Kyle Bates is also among the largest listed donors to the Repeal Now campaign supporting a ballot measure that would end Alaska’s open primaries and ranked choice voting.
In the third case, state investigators charged Soldotna dentist Joseph Mirci with submitting nearly $84,000 in fraudulent claims. He’s accused of overbilling, providing unnecessary services and also providing services below the standard of care.
In one case, a patient told investigators that Mirci had removed a tooth without her consent, according to court filings. In another, an anonymous whistleblower told investigators Mirci increased the amount of nitrous oxide provided to an 8-year-old patient who was reacting badly to the anaesthetic, according to the filings, then billed Medicaid for behavioral management after the child “went into convulsions and seizures.”
The final two cases accuse individuals on the Kenai Peninsula and in Anchorage of billing Medicaid for respite and personal care services that allegedly did not occur. Between the two, they total roughly $18,000 in allegedly fraudulent charges.
Investigators urge Alaskans to report fraud
Nobrega, the head of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, said cases like these are difficult to detect and time-consuming to investigate and prosecute. But public announcements like last month’s can serve as a deterrent, she said.
“Public awareness, I think, is very helpful,” she said. “We actually do see a decrease in what we believe is fraud being committed when there is awareness that there actually are consequences to committing fraud, and that there are cases being prosecuted.”
Publicity also helps spur referrals, Nobrega said, adding that anyone who suspects a provider might be skirting the law should reach out to the Department of Law’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
