OHIO — Eight people have been charged in Medicaid fraud and nursing home theft cases in Ohio, according to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office.
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Indictments filed by Yost’s office accuse five Medicaid providers of stealing over $500,000 from the program. Three others are accused of stealing from nursing home residents.
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“Caregivers are meant to protect the vulnerable, not exploit them,” Yost said. “My office will never tolerate thieves who line their pockets at the expense of elderly, disabled and low-income Ohioans.”
The indictments were filed in Franklin County after the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit investigated the cases.
Among the indictments, two providers are accused of billing for in-home services while traveling in the Caribbean, and a man is accused of stealing money from a relative with dementia.
Yost’s office said the following people were indicted on charges related to Medicaid fraud:
- Darnicia Burge, 27, of Cleveland, allegedly forged timesheets and double-billed for overlapping shifts at two jobs, resulting in a $1,969 loss for Medicaid. Investigators found approximately 272 instances of double-billing.
- Kimberly Henry, 56, of Columbus, is accused of billing for in-home services while her client was hospitalized for four months. Over $16,000 was stolen from Medicaid from October 2024 to February 2025.
- Ebony Jones, 23, of Akron, is accused of billing for in-home services during nine trips to Jamaica from 2022 through 2025. She also allegedly billed for daily services to two clients who reported they had not seen her in three years. This was an approximately $412,219 loss for Medicaid.
- Robert Lomas, 62, of Defiance, was charged with Medicaid fraud in connection with his job as a licensed independent chemical dependency counselor. Billing records and client interviews revealed that he allegedly billed routinely for counseling that never took place, leading to a $106,620 loss for Medicaid.
- Tina Turner, 54, of Ironton, allegedly billed for services while traveling on Caribbean cruises in 2024 and 2025, causing a $5,266 loss for Medicaid.
The following three people were indicted on charges related to theft at nursing homes:
- Columbus residents Astashiona McDonald, 26, and Diamond Tate, 27, were indicted on charges of forgery and theft from a person in a protected class for allegedly stealing $3,500 from a resident of a Columbus long-term-care facility. Residents reported nine missing checks, two of which had been cashed. Investigators discovered the checks were written to and cashed by McDonald, whom the victim did not know. Tate, an aide at the facility and McDonald’s romantic partner, allegedly worked with McDonald to facilitate the theft.
- Brian Otler, 43, of Columbus, allegedly stole $35,335 from an elderly relative suffering from dementia from December 2024 to March 2025. He’s been charged with theft from a person in a protected class and misuse of credit cards. Evidence shows he accessed the relative’s bank accounts without authorization to pay off personal debt while the victim was living in a long-term-care facility.
Ohio’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit works with federal, state and local partners to uncover Medicaid fraud and protect vulnerable adults from harm.
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