Guilty plea in Medicaid fraud

Wheelchair shop owner could face up to 16 years

By John C. Ensslin, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published March 31, 2008 at 12:30 a.m.
Updated March 31, 2008 at 6:04 a.m.

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Arnold also will be required to repay more than $1 million.

The owner of an Aurora wheelchair company has pleaded guilty to charges of theft, forgery and racketeering in connection with a scheme to steal more than $1 million from the Colorado Medicaid system between 2000 and 2005.

Daniel Crispin Arnold, 51, owner and manager of D&D Medical, entered the plea Friday. He pleaded guilty to four counts, including theft over $15,000, forgery and a violation of the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act.

Arnold could face up to 16 years in prison when he is sentenced May 7. The plea agreement also requires him to repay more than $1 million to the state.

Much of the company's business involved disabled individuals whose wheelchair services were covered by Colorado Medicaid. An Adams County grand jury indicted Arnold in September 2006.

The 49-count indictment alleged that D&D billed Medicaid for hundreds of thousands of dollars for wheelchair repairs that took only a small fraction of the time billed.

The indictment also accused the company of submitting bills for services that were not performed and printing false work orders and false repair documents to support the unjustified bills.

Several other employees also have pleaded guilty in the scheme. D&D manager William Humphries was sentenced in May 2007 to five years in prison. He also was ordered to pay nearly $730,000 in restitution.

Carl Nunn received a deferred judgment and Karen Bittner received probation.

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