Federal prosecutors announced that three more individuals have been charged in connection with an alleged $1.2 billion wound care fraud scheme centered in Arizona, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The charges were disclosed as part of a coordinated annual effort to crack down on health care fraud, and officials said the newly charged defendants reside outside Arizona but are connected to the scheme that federal authorities say preyed on vulnerable patients and unlawfully billed Medicare and other insurers.
The development marks the latest in what the Department of Justice described as a sprawling probe into fraudulent billing and related conduct tied to wound care services. The three additional indictments raise the number of people facing criminal allegations in the case to at least 13. Prosecutors said the charges reflect connections that extend beyond state lines, underscoring that authorities linked individuals living in other states to operations they allege were orchestrated from Arizona.
Authorities have emphasized the size and scope of the alleged fraud, repeatedly characterizing the operation as a $1.2 billion scheme. Federal prosecutors stated that the conduct targeted insured populations, including those covered by Medicare, and that the alleged false billing and improper claims affected both the federal program and other insurers. Specific allegations and the latest charging documents were released by the Department of Justice as part of its broader announcement on health care fraud enforcement for the year.
The alleged scheme centers on wound care services, which investigators say formed the basis for the extensive billing at issue in the case. The wound care industry provides treatments that are often critical for patients with chronic conditions; in this instance, prosecutors have framed their charges around claims that services were fraudulently billed or otherwise misrepresented to federal and private payers. A visual representation associated with the coverage shows a hand holding a stethoscope, illustrating the medical services at the center of the alleged $1.2 billion Arizona wound care Medicare fraud scheme.
While prosecutors have disclosed the number of suspects and the broad contours of the allegations, they have not released additional details about the specific roles of the newly charged defendants in publicly available statements linked to the announcement. What the Department of Justice did make clear is that the latest filings were part of its ongoing, systematic effort to identify and prosecute individuals who participate in schemes that defraud government health programs and private insurers.
The newly announced charges were accompanied by the routine legal process that follows federal indictments: criminal accusations filed by prosecutors in federal court. A separate image tied to the announcement depicts a judge’s gavel, symbolizing the criminal charges filed by federal prosecutors in the $1.2 billion Arizona-based wound care fraud case. Those charged in federal indictments are expected to face court proceedings in which the government will present its evidence; defendants will have the opportunity to respond through counsel and in court filings.
This addition brings to at least 13 the number of people criminally accused in the Arizona-based matter. Federal officials framed the latest filings as part of the Justice Department’s annual anti-fraud initiative, a recurring enforcement campaign that typically includes the announcement of multiple health care-related cases. In this instance, the department highlighted the wound care allegations among its slate of actions intended to protect public health care programs from fraudulent billing and deceptive practices.
The announcement of three new charges further expands the list of defendants in a case federal authorities say involved large-scale improper billing practices tied to wound care services. The Department of Justice has presented the matter as a multi-defendant prosecution with connections beyond Arizona, reflecting its characterization of the allegations as involving both an Arizona base of operations and links to individuals living outside the state. Federal prosecutors have positioned the charges within their broader health care fraud enforcement priorities, emphasizing both the monetary scale cited in the indictment and the accused scheme’s impact on insured patients and payers.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona, one of the newly charged is Brian Rowan of Las Vegas, vice president of sales for the allograft company, who allegedly orchestrated illegal kickbacks and bribes funneled through sham invoices and shell accounts. He personally profited more than $24 million while the scheme caused $614 million in payments on $1.2 billion in false Medicare and insurer claims for unnecessary treatments on vulnerable hospice patients.
Two Arizona wound‑graft company owners previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced: Alexandra Gehrke was sentenced to 15.5 years in prison on Oct. 7, 2025, and Jeffrey King was sentenced to 14 years on Oct. 10, 2025; both were ordered to pay restitution and forfeit substantial proceeds.
Court filings identify Gehrke’s companies — Apex Medical LLC and Viking Medical Consultants LLC — and allege those firms contracted with medically untrained “sales representatives” to locate elderly and hospice patients and order amniotic wound allografts from a distributor between November 2022 and May 2024.
The charges were announced as part of the Department of Justice’s National Health Care Fraud Takedown, which charged 455 defendants nationwide in connection with more than $6.5 billion in alleged fraud, and CMS reduced Medicare’s payment for allografts to $127 per square centimeter effective Jan. 1, 2026 to address the spending spike.
Investigators also seized roughly $97 million from bank accounts, life insurance annuities exceeding $21 million, luxury vehicles (including a Ferrari 488 Spider and multiple Mercedes‑Benz models), cash, and precious metals as part of the enforcement and forfeiture actions.