'Most Wanted Fugitive' Indicted For $10M Health Care Fraud: Feds

A "most wanted fugitive" from Haiti who co-owned a medical equipment company in Hicksville with his wife was arraigned Thursday at federal court in Central Islip on charges in connection to defrauding Medicare and Medicaid out of millions of dollars, according to United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

Etienne Allonce, 55, of Port au Prince, Haiti, was a fugitive for more than a decade after fleeing the United States right before he would be arrested, officials say. Allonce and his wife Helen Michel were co-owners and operators of Hicksville-based Medical Solutions Management, Inc., a medical equipment company that provided durable medical equipment and supplies to nursing homes.

“Mr. Allonce allegedly thought he could escape his crimes by leaving the United States, and hiding as a fugitive for more than a decade, leaving his wife behind to answer for their defrauding American taxpayers,” Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney said in a press release.

Between April 2003 and March 2007, authorities say Allonce and Michel submitted $10 million in false claims to Medicare and Medicaid seeking payment for medical supplies they claimed were provided to patients at nursing homes. However, officials say those medical supplies were not provided.

Allonce fled the United States hours before federal agents arrested Michel, officials say.

Michel was convicted in August 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 12 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $1.3 million that had been seized by the government. Michel served her sentence and was released from prison in December 2017.

Allonce was expelled from Haiti to face charges of health care fraud and conspiracy on Long Island. He was placed on the "Most Wanted" list of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General prior to his return to the United States.

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