Another Day in Newsom’s Kingdom of Fraud
The federal takedown in Southern California on April 2, 2026, should come as no surprise to anyone paying attention. Eight suspects got hauled in for running a massive health-care fraud operation that targeted Medicare and bilked the system out of more than $50 million in intended losses. These were not mom-and-pop operations helping the truly sick. These were sham hospice outfits that signed up non-terminal patients, falsified medical records to make them look like they were dying, and billed taxpayers for end-of-life care that never happened. The survival rates at these places stayed suspiciously high—above 80 percent—because the “dying” patients were not dying. They were just marks in a grift that treated the federal government like an unlimited ATM.
The Operation That Turned Hospice into a Cash Machine
This was not some small-time hustle. The scheme, part of what federal officials dubbed Operation Never Say Die, revolved around fake hospice facilities in the Los Angeles area. Operators recruited people who were not terminally ill, slapped their information onto Medicare reimbursement forms, and collected millions for services that amounted to little more than paperwork. In one piece of the ring, the fraud generated $8.5 million over several years by simply placing names on billing forms and letting the checks roll in. Another arm involved a doctor and nurse who used their daughter’s name to run a hospice after their own criminal convictions barred them from doing it themselves. They falsified patient files to claim terminal illnesses and pocketed more than $4 million before the hammer dropped.
The whole thing relied on California’s notoriously lax oversight of hospice licensing. State officials issued the permits, looked the other way, and let the fraud machine run. Federal prosecutors made that point crystal clear: the Golden State has become the kingdom of fraud, and the failure to police these facilities let the scheme flourish. The arrests targeted the heart of the operation—people who knew exactly what they were doing and did it anyway because the money was too easy and the consequences too remote.
Who Got Arrested and What They Are Accused Of
The eight defendants arrested include a mix of nurses, a chiropractor, a psychologist, and others deeply embedded in the scheme. Among those named in the federal sweep:
- Lolita Beronilla Minerd (also known as Lolita Beronilla Rice), 65, of Anaheim.
- Gladwin Gill, 66, and his wife Amelou Gill, 70, both of Covina.
- Nita Almuete Paddit Palma, 76, currently held at a federal prison in Seattle, and her husband Adolfo Catbagan, 68, of Glendale.
- Evelyn Tindimobuna, 51, of Chatsworth.
- Ivan Verne Lauritzen, 50, of Simi Valley.
These were not low-level employees. They ran the facilities, handled the billing, and falsified the records that turned healthy Californians into fake hospice patients. Three nurses, a chiropractor, and a psychologist were among the group charged with conspiracy to commit health-care fraud and related counts. The indictment lays out how they schemed to defraud Medicare of over $50 million while the state sat idle. Separate but related charges hit others for false claims to private insurers and immigration-related fraud, but the main $50 million-plus hit landed squarely on the hospice grift.
SoCal doctor at center of hospice fraud probe flaunted luxury lifestyle on social media https://t.co/CBCvvpjRf1 pic.twitter.com/WaOloJB9XX
— California Post (@californiapost) April 2, 2026
The Bigger Picture: Taxpayers Foot the Bill While California Looks the Other Way
This bust is not an isolated incident. It is the predictable result of a state government that prioritizes politics over basic competence. Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration has presided over a system where hospice licenses get rubber-stamped and oversight is an afterthought. Federal officials did not mince words: California’s failure to monitor these facilities let the fraud explode. The response from Newsom’s camp? Blame the feds for finally doing the job the state should have handled years ago.
The American people are the ones getting robbed. Medicare is funded by every working taxpayer, and every dollar stolen here means higher premiums, bigger deficits, or cuts somewhere else. These suspects allegedly turned end-of-life care into a racket, preying on a program meant to help the vulnerable while lining their own pockets. The Trump administration’s Justice Department and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are finally treating health-care fraud like the crime it is instead of a cost of doing business.
America First Means No More Free Rides for Fraudsters
The likely outcome of this takedown is straightforward. The eight will face federal charges that carry serious prison time if convicted. The money trail will get followed, assets seized, and whatever they stole clawed back where possible. More important, this sends a message: the era of soft-on-crime California getting a pass while ripping off the federal treasury is over. The feds are moving fast because the waste and abuse have gone on too long.
Taxpayers should not have to subsidize sham hospices or any other grift that treats government programs as personal piggy banks. The arrests are a good start, but the real fix is tighter oversight, real consequences, and an end to the culture that lets this happen in the first place. California’s leadership can complain all it wants. The rest of the country is watching, and the American people are done paying for it. This bust proves the fraud was real, the scheme was massive, and the time for accountability is now.