The owner of a Schenectady County medical transportation company and his office manager have been indicted for allegedly stealing more than $1.8 million from New York State’s Medicaid program over nearly four years, according to an announcement by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney, and Schenectady County Sheriff Dominic Dagostino.
Mohammad Chaudhry, 43, the owner of Angel Medical Transportation, is accused of inflating Medicaid bills between January 2020 and September 2024. Prosecutors allege he submitted claims for rides that never occurred, overbilled for group rides, and misrepresented trip destinations to increase payments. Office manager Noah Shook, 45, is accused of paying kickbacks to Medicaid recipients as part of the scheme.
“Mohammad Chaudhry and Noah Shook allegedly defrauded the Medicaid program, enriching themselves with nearly two million dollars meant to provide health services to New Yorkers,” DiNapoli said. “My office will continue to partner with law enforcement to root out waste, fraud and abuse, and protect the state’s Medicaid program. I thank District Attorney Carney and Sheriff Dagostino and his Criminal Investigations Unit for their partnership in the investigation. I would also like to thank Juliet T. Hodkins, acting head of the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, for her office’s assistance.”
District Attorney Carney added: “Muhammad Chaudhry is accused of stealing from a program meant to support vulnerable people in need. By billing Medicaid for transportation services that were never provided and paying patients to take part in his fraudulent scheme, he lined his own pockets at the expense of our community. My office will continue to protect taxpayer funds and hold accountable anyone who steals from these programs for personal profit.”
Angel Medical Transportation was enrolled as a provider in the Medicaid program. Regulations require prior authorization for group rides; providers can only bill mileage once per group ride. The investigation found that Chaudhry allegedly billed for unauthorized group rides as if they were individual trips and claimed payment for rides that did not occur or had falsified destinations.
Investigators also discovered that some patients seeking drug treatment received cash kickbacks from Chaudhry and Shook in exchange for using their services. In certain cases, these funds were reportedly used by recipients to purchase illegal drugs.
Further findings indicate that Chaudhry wired more than $400,000 overseas with witness testimony describing it as being used to build a “palace.”
Both defendants appeared before Judge Matthew J. Sypniewski in Schenectady County Court—Chaudhry on charges including grand larceny, health care fraud, and money laundering; Shook on money laundering charges. Both are scheduled back in court on November 12.
Authorities emphasized that all charges are accusations at this stage; both men are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Since taking office in 2007, Comptroller DiNapoli has focused on combating public corruption across New York State. Members of the public can report suspected fraud involving taxpayer funds through several channels listed at https://www.osc.state.ny.us/investigations or by calling the toll-free Fraud Hotline at 1-888-672-4555.
