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A Minnesota appeals court has reversed a district court’s decision to overturn six jury convictions in a Medicaid fraud case involving more than $7.2 mn in fraudulent reimbursements, finding sufficient evidence to support the original guilty verdicts.
In an opinion issued October 26, 2026, the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled that circumstantial evidence presented at trial supported the conviction of Yusuf, the owner of Medicaid provider Promise Health Service, on six counts of aiding and abetting theft by swindle.
- The Minnesota Court of Appeals ordered the reinstatement of six guilty verdicts against the owner of Promise Health Service in a Medicaid fraud case involving more than $7.2 mn.
- Prosecutors presented evidence of more than 40,000 fraudulent Medicaid claims submitted between October 2019 and August 2022, including billing for services that were not provided or authorized.
- Investigators found more than $1 mn transferred to the agency’s owner, alongside millions in payments to individuals without background studies and substantial retail purchases.
The appellate court reversed the district court’s post-verdict acquittal and remanded the case for reinstatement of the jury’s findings.
The case concerned thousands of Medicaid reimbursement claims submitted over nearly three years, with prosecutors presenting evidence of falsified service documentation, improper billing and substantial financial transfers from the provider’s accounts.
Minnesota Medicaid fraud case and overturned convictions
Yusuf and his wife established Promise Health Service in 2018 as a Medicaid provider agency, according to the appellate opinion.
The company was initially registered in Burnsville before Yusuf changed its address in state records to a property on Central Avenue in Minneapolis.
When investigators searched the Minneapolis location in 2022, they discovered that Promise was using a mailbox rather than operating from a physical office.
Company records were also mixed with documents belonging to other Medicaid provider agencies at the location, including businesses connected to Yusuf’s family.
Minnesota prosecutors charged Yusuf in June 2024 with racketeering and six counts related to fraudulent Medicaid billing between October 2019 and August 2022.
Following a seven-day trial, the district court dismissed the racketeering charge before the case went to the jury.
Jurors subsequently found Yusuf guilty on all six theft counts and determined that aggravating sentencing factors were present.
The district court later set aside the guilty verdicts and acquitted Yusuf. The Court of Appeals concluded that the trial record contained sufficient circumstantial evidence to sustain the convictions and ordered their reinstatement.
Evidence of fraudulent Medicaid billing and false documentation
The appeals court identified several elements of trial evidence connecting Yusuf to Promise’s management and financial operations.
According to the opinion, Yusuf repeatedly represented himself as the company’s owner, manager, contact person and authorized agent.
He also participated in establishing the company’s payroll system in May 2020 and signed checks issued from its business bank account. Those transactions included checks payable to his brother, Mohamed, which were identified as loans.
Witness testimony described irregularities in the agency’s service records and Medicaid reimbursement claims.
A former employee testified that she prepared client documentation without meeting the individuals receiving services and copied sections of information between records. Other evidence showed that Promise submitted claims for more overnight care than was actually delivered.
The agency also used documents that one recipient testified she had not signed and billed Medicaid for a minor receiving more service hours than had been authorized.
The Court of Appeals determined that the combined evidence was sufficient for a jury to find Yusuf guilty of aiding and abetting theft by swindle.
More than $7.2 mn in fraudulent Medicaid reimbursements
According to the appellate opinion, Promise submitted more than 40,000 fraudulent Medicaid reimbursement claims and received over $7.2 mn through the scheme.
Each of the six charged periods involved fraudulent payments exceeding $35,000, with some periods accounting for more than $1 mn. Investigators also examined how funds moved through the company’s accounts.
Testimony presented at trial indicated that Yusuf personally received more than $1 mn from Promise accounts, while his brother Mohamed received over $359,000.
Investigators identified additional transactions, including more than $361,000 in payments for which no business purpose could be established. Financial records also showed more than $2.5 mn paid to individuals who had not undergone background studies, alongside more than $268,000 in peer-to-peer money transfers.
Retail spending exceeded $400,000, including purchases of more than $56,000 at Nordstrom, more than $3,000 at Canada Goose and more than $14,000 at Feldmann Imports.
These transactions formed part of the financial evidence presented alongside the billing records and testimony concerning the agency’s operations.
The appellate ruling restores the legal effect of the jury’s findings by reversing the district court’s acquittal. The case now returns to the lower court for reinstatement of the six guilty verdicts, including the jury’s findings on aggravating sentencing factors.
