Bond Set For Clinic Owner In School District Fraud Case
MIAMI (CBS4) – Bond was lowered Friday to $100,000 for a Miami-Dade health clinic owner who was arrested, along with two Miami-Dade public school employees after allegedly defrauding the county's medical insurance plan.
The judge originally set 22-year-old Yasiel Reyes-Gonzalez' bond at $250,000 and required him to surrender his passport however, Yasiel's attorney asked the judge Friday morning for the bond to be reduced and the request was granted.
Once he posts bond, he'll be required to wear a GPS monitor.
On Thursday, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle joined School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, School Police Chief Charles Hurley and Captain Steven Smith of Division of Insurance Fraud in announcing the arrests of Miami-Dade Schools bus driver Cynthia DaSilva and school employee Maria Mendez.
Prosecutors said DaSilva would convince other bus drivers to give their insurance information to a clinic in exchange for $400 in kickback money. The clinic then allegedly billed the school system's self-insured health policy for services never performed.
The owner of Operator Health Clinic and Leon Global Center is Yasiel Reyes-Gonzalez, who prosecutors say billed the school district for care of about 100 schools employees, most of them school bus drivers.
He is charged with seven counts of patient brokering, each count punishable by up to five years in prison.
"If somebody, employee or not, is caught doing something like this, we're not going to put you on administrative leave. We're going to fire you. We're going to fire you on the spot," said Carvalho. "And we will spare no expense, in identifying every single person responsible for these deeds."
The school system believes they lost more than a million dollars because of the fraud.
"We fight like hell to balance our budget, and for this to happen is a complete slap in our face," said Miami-Dade Schools Police Chief Charles Hurley.
Additional arrests are expected.
