CEO Accused In Multi-Million Dollar Fraud Scheme Arrested At San Francisco Airport: Feds

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A CEO of a Fresno-based health care company wanted on fraud charges was taken into custody while trying to board a flight at San Francisco International Airport, federal prosecutors said.

Cashmir Chinedu Luke, who is charged in a criminal complaint accusing him of defrauding the Department of Veterans Affairs out of more than $7 million, was getting ready to board a flight to Nigeria when he was arrested, the United States Attorney's Office said Wednesday.

Federal prosecutors say Luke was the CEO of Four Corners Health LLC, which provided unskilled in-home nursing and day-to-day care for elderly Veterans Affairs beneficiaries, from 2019 to 2024. The company operates in Fresno, Tulare, Merced, Mariposa, Madera, San Francisco and Contra Costa counties, authorities said.

During this time, Luke ran a scheme to bill the Department of Veterans Affairs for hours of care that were not actually provided to veterans, federal prosecutors said. He also submitted false claims in which he reported care to veterans who had already died, federal prosecutors.

He submitted over 10,000 false claims, scamming the department out of more than $7 million, federal prosecutors said.

"Luke spent reimbursement payments immediately after being paid by the VA, either by spending lavishly on personal expenses or by promptly transferring the funds across a network of bank accounts throughout Asia and Africa," federal prosecutors said.

Luke could face a maximum of 10 years in federal prison if convicted of the charges against him, and a $250,000 fine, authorities said.