Officer indicted in fraud case
Taos County officer accused of falsifying Medicaid documents
TAOS — A grand jury late last week indicted Taos County sheriff ’s Sgt. Ricky M. Romero on one count of Medicaid fraud, 10 counts of falsification of documents and 10 counts of perjury, all fourth-degree felonies.
Romero, who ran for Taos County sheriff in 2014, is accused of billing a Medicaid program for taking care of a disabled relative during a time period when he also was on duty with the sheriff ’s office, according to a complaint filed March 22 in the Taos County Magistrate Court by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office.
The state’s complaint alleges Romero signed 10 time sheets and submitted them to Medicaid provider Options Home Care Inc., claiming he had provided “personal care services” to a disabled relative between April 2012 and September 2013. Romero was on duty at the sheriff’s office during the same times listed on the time sheets, according to the complaint.
The grand jury’s indictment, announced Thursday in the 8th District Court in Taos, alleges Romero knowingly made or “caused to be made” false representations on time sheets on several occasions and knowingly made false statements on the time sheets.
Taos County Sheriff Jerry Hogrefe said in an email to The Taos News that any information about the criminal proceedings against Romero would have to be answered by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office.
Romero had been employed with the county for more than 16 years, according to the sheriff ’s office. When asked if Romero was still employed as a deputy or had been placed on administrative leave, Hogrefe said in the email, “I am sorry I cannot comment on any employment or personnel matters at this time.”
Hogrefe said in an earlier interview with The Taos News that he would be conducting his own internal investigation regarding the state’s allegations. No trial has been scheduled yet. This story first appeared on the website of The Taos News, a sister publication of The Santa Fe New Mexican.