Dearborn, Michigan – 23 years old Dearborn A woman faces decades in prison for her role in a $65 million coupon scheme.
Related: 10 accused in massive $46 million out-of-pocket fraud scheme involving 26 pharmacies around Metro Detroit
Suzan Berro, 23, has been accused of submitting fraudulent reimbursement claims to a pharmaceutical company’s co-payment assistance program. These manufacturers sponsored coupon programs to help patients using expensive, name-brand prescription drugs.
Berro was a biller for multiple pharmacies and had been in the scheme for nearly a year, officials said.
According to court records, she obtained addresses from real estate listings, made up names and dates of birth, and created fake prescriptions for fictitious patients. Next, she chose expensive name brands and paired them with the doctors’ real names and qualifications.
According to officials, Bello will go to “extreme efforts” to make her patients look real. I made sure it was close.
According to eyewitness accounts, most of the pharmacies Bello listed existed only on paper and were never open to the public or ordered stock.
Bello and her co-conspirators filed fraudulent claims on behalf of more than 40 pharmacies, officials said.
“This was a complex scheme to exploit dozens of established programs to help people who can’t legally afford drugs,” said U.S. federal attorney Dawn Ison. “Our office will continue to investigate and unravel these schemes and will vigorously pursue those responsible.”
Berro was found guilty of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud by a federal jury on Friday (January 13). The conviction came after her six-day trial before U.S. District Judge Nancy G. Edmonds.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 1.
Bello faces up to 20 years in prison on each count.
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