Brain Scan Hustle Funded Couple's Minnesota Mansion, Girlfriends: Feds

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — A Minnesota couple is accused of running a $15 million medical billing scam that funded a luxury mansion in Eden Prairie, complete with a home theater, sauna, and, according to prosecutors, the living expenses of the man’s other girlfriends who helped carry out the scheme.

Prosecutors say the pair overbilled Medicare and other insurers for brainwave treatments — or "neurofeedback therapy" — including sessions for children who were actually out of state on vacation.

Gabriel Luthor, 39, and Elizabeth Brown, 40, are each charged with six counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.

The couple was arrested in Las Vegas and made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court in Nevada earlier this week.

"Minnesota has a fraud problem," said Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick. "This case is yet another example of defendants defrauding government programs out of millions. This type of widespread fraud is unacceptable and will not be tolerated."

According to court documents, beginning in 2018 Luthor and Brown intentionally devised and carried out a scheme to overbill Medicare, Medicaid, and other insurers for medical services provided through Golden Victory Medical, LLC (GVM).

Luthor and Brown were in a relationship and together founded GVM in 2018.

According to court documents, one of the main medical services GVM claimed to provide was neurofeedback therapy.

Neurofeedback therapy involves placing sensors on a patient’s scalp to monitor brain waves, often used to assess mental health treatments.

But according to the indictment, Luthor and Brown fraudulently overbilled insurers for neurofeedback services by using medical codes that didn’t apply, combining codes that couldn’t legally be used together, and exaggerating the length of treatments actually provided.

Luthor and Brown continued submitting false claims even after repeated warnings from insurers, an outside auditor, and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, according to prosecutors.

In total, GVM submitted hundreds of thousands of false claims to insurers, many of which the insurers paid, resulting in an estimated loss of over $15 million, authorities said.

Millions of dollars in fraudulent proceeds were transferred from bank account to bank account and ultimately retained by Luthor and Brown, according to prosecutors.

Luthor and Brown used the funds to purchase a mansion in Eden Prairie and to pay their living expenses and the living expenses of other girlfriends of Luthor’s, who lived with Luthor and Brown and assisted in the fraud scheme, authorities said.

"Defrauding critical healthcare programs like Medicaid and Medicare burden systems designed to serve patients and puts them at risk," said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of the FBI Minneapolis. "The FBI and our partners will not tolerate those who abuse the healthcare system for personal gain and will pursue justice on behalf of taxpayers and patients."

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, FBI, Eden Prairie Police Department, the Office of Inspector General at HHS, and the U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew D. Forbes is prosecuting the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew D. Forbes is prosecuting the case.