International fugitive pleads guilty to fraud scheme

TAMPA - Ubert Guillermo Rodriguez pleaded guilty to a multimillion-dollar health care fraud scheme in the Tampa area, according to a release from the United States Department of Justice.

Rodriguez was the president and owner of Largo-based G.R. Services Equipment & Supplies Inc., which claimed to provide durable medical equipment to Medicare beneficiaries, the statement says. From May 2013 to July 2013, the company submitted more than $2.5 million in false and fraudulent Medicare reimbursement claims, authorities say.

Federal law enforcement agents previously seized $243,339 in proceeds from the scheme from the bank account for G.R. Services, the statement says.

Rodriguez, a 47-year-old Cuban national, had been wanted since 2013 for the fraud scheme, according to the release. He was arrested when he arrived at Miami International Airport on a flight from Cuba on Oct. 9.

The case was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force under the supervision of the Criminal Division's Fraud Section and U.S. Attorney's Office. Since it began in 2007, the Medicare Strike Force has charged nearly 2,000 defendants who have combined to bill the Medicare program for more than $6 billion, the statement says.