Tinley Park Doctor Arrested as Part of Medical Fraud Investigation

A Tinley Park doctor was arrested by FBI agents Tuesday in connection to a federal health care fraud investigation, according to Chicago's U.S. State's Attorney's Office.  

Dr. Banio Koroma, 63, was charged with making false statements relating to health care benefits, according to a release sent out by the U.S. State's Attorney's Office. The charges stem from a fraud investigation involving Chicago-based Mobile Doctors, which manages doctors who make house calls in six states.

Authorities claim the health agency falsely increased—known as “upcoding”—Medicare bills for in-home visits that weren't as involved as they had been reported, the release stated. The U.S. Attorney's Office also claims Mobile Doctors wrongly claimed fees for services their patients weren't qualified to have done, the release added. In these cases, Koroma, who had worked for Mobile Doctors since around 2007, was allegedly the referring doctor, the release stated.

Along with Koroma, Mobile Doctors CEO Dike Ajiri, 42, of Wilmette, also was arrested as part of the investigation. He was charged with health care fraud as part of the criminal complaint, which was filed Monday, Aug. 26 and unsealed Tuesday after the arrests, the release stated. 

Federal agents also searched the offices of Mobile Doctors in Chicago, Detroit and Indianapolis, the release stated. They seized about $2.568 million in allegedly fraudulent assets from the agency's different bank accounts, the release added.

Koroma and Ajiri were scheduled to appear Tuesday afternoon in U.S. District Court.