Sham Dental Practices In Sheepshead Bay Area
Two Brooklyn men, Joseph Shyknevsky, 46, and Valerian Kverenchkhiladze, 43, as well as three others were arraigned last Friday on charges related to an alleged scheme to defraud Medicaid, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s Office Announced.
Shyknevsky, a licensed dentist, is charged with hiring the other four, allowing them to perform dental work on Medicaid recipients, and billing the State for the dental work performed by those individuals, none of whom allegedly have a dental license. All in all, it is alleged that Medicaid paid Shyknevsky over $48,000 for dental work performed upon 110 Medicaid recipients by unlicensed individuals.
“Exploiting Medicaid by using unlicensed medical professionals not only drains the system of resources, it endangers the well-being of New Yorkers,” said Attorney General Schneiderman. “New York has strong licensing requirements for healthcare, and those who think they can skirt these important safety rules will be held accountable.”
Brooklyn grand jury returned an indictment against Shyknevsky; his corporation, JS Atlantic Dental PC; and the four unlicensed individuals whom Shyknevsky hired to practice dentistry: Ilya Zolotar, 50, of Staten Island; Konstantin Shtrambrand, 46, of Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania; Sergi Tolokolnikov, 57, of Staten Island; and Valerian Kverenchkhiladze, 43, of Brooklyn.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because three of the defendants Zolotar, Shtrambrand and Tolokolnikov were previously arrested by the Attorney General’s office in 2014 for allegedly performing complicated dental procedures on patients, including filing and root canals, without a proper license.
Prosecutors said at the time that Shtrambrand, Zolotar, and Tolokolnikov saw patients at J.S. Atlantic Dental at 1707 Avenue P. The investigation into the alleged unlawful billing remained ongoing, which in turn led to this indictment of Shyknevsky and his employees.
The Grand Jury charged each defendant with Healthcare Fraud in the Third Degree, a class “D” felony. The indictment also charges Shyknevsky, his company J.S. Atlantic Dental P.C., Zolotar, and Shtrambrand with other related charges including Unauthorized Practice a Profession (Dentistry) Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree; and Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree, all class “E” felonies.
The defendants pleaded not guilty when arraigned before Justice Suzanne Mondo of the New York State Supreme Court, Kings County and were released on their own recognizance.
If convicted, each defendant faces up to seven years’ in prison.
The charges against the defendant are allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.