A Miami man, Carlos Alberto Padron, 56, has received a renewed federal prison sentence for money laundering while he was on supervised release from a prior federal prison term. Padron has been sentenced to a total of 90 months (seven-and-a-half years) in prison and three years of supervised release. Previously, he had been sentenced to 97 months in a money laundering case in New York and had only recently been released.
Padron, along with co-conspirator Ovidio Gonzalez Roche, engaged in money laundering activities involving nearly $250,000 in Medicare fraud proceeds through fraudulent medical equipment companies, including Newtech Medical Supply LLC and Spraig Medical Supplies LLC in Pompano Beach, in 2022. Additionally, in 2021, Padron was involved in laundering over $2.1 million in Medicare fraud proceeds through two other medical equipment firms, Unlimited Medical Supply in Pembroke Pines and Best Medical Supply in North Fort Myers.
Padron received some of the fraudulent proceeds, approximately $260,000, through the nominee owner of these companies. In the 2022 case, the Pompano Beach companies processed approximately $3.7 million in Medicare claims, with Padron playing a crucial role in laundering the money for “healthcare fraudsters.”
Law enforcement investigations involved interviews with doctors associated with the fraudulent claims, who denied prescribing the medical equipment. Furthermore, patients claimed they neither needed nor received the equipment listed in the claims.
Padron’s sentencing memorandum outlined his involvement in these activities and highlighted his history and offense, calling for a severe punishment. He had previously been sentenced in New York for his role in a prescription drug diversion scheme and was responsible for restitution totaling over $2.6 million.
In this recent case, Padron pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in June. The prosecutor emphasized that Padron’s history and lack of rehabilitation made him more culpable than his co-conspirator Gonzalez, who received a shorter sentence of 21 months and three years of supervised release in the 2022 conspiracy.
The prosecutor argued that Padron’s previous 97-month federal prison sentence did not deter him from money laundering, and as a result, he was now ordered to pay over $2.4 million in restitution. Currently, Padron is held in the federal prison in Miami.
By FCCT Editorial Team