The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Elnar Zarbailov of Staten Island, New York, was sentenced to 37 months in prison for conspiring to launder nearly USD 1.5 million in illicit health care fraud proceeds through multiple domestic and overseas banks on behalf of a transnational criminal organization. The court also ordered him to forfeit USD 1,457,898. Court documents describe Zarbailov as a fixer and money launderer for an organization based in Russia and elsewhere that ran a multi-billion-dollar scheme targeting Medicare and private health insurers, which the department said was uncovered by Operation Gold Rush. The network used false sale and corporate registration documents to open accounts for fraudulent durable medical equipment companies, deposited insurance reimbursement checks to give the funds an appearance of legitimacy, and then moved the money to shell companies and banks overseas. Zarbailov deposited proceeds from five linked durable medical equipment companies and transferred the funds to other accounts, including accounts abroad. He was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport in September 2024 while attempting to leave the United States for Azerbaijan and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in October 2025.
U.S. Department of Justice2026-05-18
U.S. Department of Justice secures 37 month sentence for New York man who laundered nearly USD 1.5 million in health care fraud proceeds for transnational criminal organization
The U.S. Department of Justice reported that Elnar Zarbailov was sentenced to 37 months in prison and ordered to forfeit USD 1,457,898 for conspiring to launder nearly USD 1.5 million in illicit health care fraud proceeds for a transnational criminal organization. Court documents state that Zarbailov acted as a fixer and money launderer for a Russia-based network that used fraudulent durable medical equipment companies and shell entities to move Medicare and private insurer reimbursements through banks.