WASHINGTON (TNND) — From election integrity to healthcare and even homelessness, federal officials are actively cracking down on fraud across multiple sectors in the state of California. With no signs of slowing down as the November midterms inch closer.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, told The National News Desk this week, multiple investigations are currently underway.
I have said that we do have multiple election fraud investigations opened. We are looking into them. Some investigations are further along than others,” said Essayli. “Under DOJ policy, I can’t discuss the specifics of those but just know that we will follow the evidence in each of those cases. We will see where it leads us,” he added.
Aside from elections, Essayli detailed his ‘Homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force.’ Saying the money “thrown around to the homeless industrial complex is astonishing.”
Within a few months of setting that up we started bringing criminal charges. We’ve charged, I believe, at least four indictments to date and the loss is about $100 million so far,” Essayli said.
Essayli also shared an update on the massive healthcare fraud crackdown in the state. He said they’ve already charged billions of dollars in fraud. Including one case where a man pled guilty to defrauding the California Medi-Cal system out of about $200 million within 11 months.
Basically, the state of California suspended their pre-authorization requirements on a website, and he was able to submit over $200 million worth of bills in that short window and the state just paid it out,” said Essayli.
Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration has consistently pushed back on federal fraud claims. Highlighting the state’s history of revoking licenses in vulnerable sectors like hospice care. Newsom also announced in a social media video this week that he and his wife are being investigated by the DOJ. He strongly criticized the probe and framed it as politically motivated.
He’s turned the levers of government into his own personal power ministries to reward cronies and to try and jail his opponents,” Newsom said.
Citing a person familiar with the matter, Politico reported this week that the government has been investigating Newsom’s orbit for roughly a year. Originating with whistleblower tips which have focused on his wife’s taxes and his former chief of staff. The DOJ has declined to comment.