Authorities Say Nashville Man Stole from Taxpayers to Treat His ADHD

 

The Tennessee Office of Inspector General announced several new TennCare fraud arrests this week, including the arrest of one man who allegedly used TennCare to treat his Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

That man, Thomas William Biggs Jr., 44, of Nashville, was on the run for more than a year and a half, according to a Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration press release.

“Seventeen months ago, in January 2018, a Davidson County Grand Jury indicted Biggs for TennCare fraud, accusing him of using TennCare to doctor shop for drugs,” the press release said.

“Charges say he used TennCare benefits to visit multiple healthcare providers within a short time period to obtain prescriptions for Adderall, an often-abused amphetamine used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).”

Elsewhere, according to another press release, authorities charged three Shelby County residents in separate TennCare fraud cases:

• Alaa Ahmad, 40, of Memphis, charged with two counts of TennCare fraud and one count of theft of property over $10,000. Ahmad is accused of obtaining TennCare benefits by claiming his minor child was living with him when, in fact, the child lives out of the country. Without the dependent, Ahmad was not eligible for TennCare.

• Ereca Fondren, 33, of Memphis, charged with two counts of TennCare fraud and one count of theft of property over $10,000. Fondren and her minor child obtained medical benefits through TennCare when she intentionally mispresented that her family lived in Tennessee. They lived in Mississippi, rendering them ineligible for TennCare.

• Sonya Boyland, 43, of Memphis, charged with three counts of TennCare fraud and one count of theft of property over $10,000. Boyland is accused of receiving TennCare benefits by fraudulently failing to disclose her income to the state which would have made her ineligible for TennCare benefits. During the arrest, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office uncovered additional crimes including theft of several firearms, motor vehicle theft and several burglaries of motor vehicles.  These discoveries lead to the arrest of six other individuals.

According to another press release, authorities charged an Alabama woman with TennCare fraud for falsely reporting her residence to obtain benefits from Tennessee’s taxpayer-funded healthcare insurance program.

The OIG, with the assistance of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, announced the arrest of Crystal Price, 36, of Bridgeport, Ala.

“A Marion County indictment charges Price with TennCare fraud and theft of services over $2,500 but less than $10,000,” according to the press release.

Charges say she fraudulently reported her residency as Tennessee to appear eligible for TennCare, while living in Bridgeport, Alabama.

TennCare fraud is a Class D felony punishable by up to four years in prison per charge. Theft of property over $10,000 is a Class C felony which carries a sentence of up to six years in prison.

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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].