Treatment center owner target of Medicaid fraud probe

CLEVELAND » A man viewed as a local superhero with a matching car collection and a penchant for completing daring feats for charity is under investigation for his alleged involvement in a multi-million dollar Medicaid fraud scheme at his two Ohio substance abuse treatment centers.

A forfeiture complaint filed last week by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Cleveland seeks to keep around $3.5 million in assets from 38-year-old Ryan Sheridan, whose Braking Point Recovery Services operated centers in suburban Youngstown and suburban Columbus.

The complaint says the forfeitures are “traceable” to federal health care fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering. Justin Herdman, the U.S. attorney for northern Ohio, said Sheridan “ripped off taxpayers.”

“This case underscores that health care fraud is big business and a serious crime, particularly at a time when more resources are being devoted to drug treatment,” Herdman said.

No criminal charges have been filed against Sheridan or anyone associated with Braking Point. Sheridan’s attorney did not respond to repeated messages seeking comment. The complaint says Braking Point submitted nearly 135,000 claims seeking $48 million in reimbursements from May 2015 until the FBI and other agencies shut down the centers during raids in October 2017. Ohio Medicaid agency paid Braking Point $31 million for those claims.

Investigators also searched the homes of Sheridan and his ex-wife, who submitted Medicaid claims for Braking Point. The complaint said the investigation began in December 2016.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office wants Sheridan to forfeit $2.2 million in a now-frozen bank account, $327,000 from a brokerage account and $390,000 in bundled cash found in a basement gun safe at Sheridan’s home in Columbiana County.

The complaint asks that Sheridan also forfeit his car collection, which includes a replica Batmobile that Sheridan bought for $160,000 and a replica of the “Ghostbusters” hearse he bought for $145,000.