Woman charged in $11.2 million dental scam in Palm Beach County

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. (CBS12) — A woman has been accused of committing multimillion-dollar insurance fraud through unauthorized dental practices in Palm Beach County, defrauding unsuspecting patients and using the ill-gotten gains to buy a luxury home.

An investigation led by the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO) began in August 2021 when multiple patients reported being improperly billed for treatment at the dental practice of 42-year-old Evelyn Cruz.

Cruz and her husband allegedly opened several dental practices using the names of licensed dentists, many of whom were unaware that their credentials had been misused. However, between January 2020 and May 2022, Cruz reportedly paid one licensed dentist a total of $61,918 to use his name, even though he did not work at any of her practices.

From 2012 to 2019, Cruz opened four dental offices: The Dental Specialists of Boynton Beach, Dental Specialists of Doral Group, Dental Specialists of Broward Group and Dental Specialists of Pembroke Pines.

Although on paper the practices were owned by a licensed dentist, an investigation revealed that Cruz and her husband were the actual owners.

On June 29, 2023, during a search of their Southwest Ranch home, detectives discovered IRS documents indicating that Cruz was the owner and president of a dental corporation.

They also found a cashier’s check for $400,000 from Dental Specialists Management Group and nearly $387,000 in cash stored in trash bags among patient receipts.

Over the years, they allegedly accumulated about $11.2 million in insurance proceeds.

A breakdown of fraudulent activity directly related to patient pocketbooks included:

16 patients were billed for treatment at Broward that they say never took place, totaling at least $12,394. However, the statement noted that the loss of 10 patients has yet to be determined.
11 patients with $18,149 in overcharges due to “fictitious charges.”
7 patients were billed for outstanding procedures totaling $11,326.
Two patients were billed twice for the same service, resulting in a total of $7,544.
1 patient was charged for the procedure and billed to insurance for a total of $80.

PBSO notes in the report that based on Cruz and her husband’s JPMorgan Chase bank records, they made deposits from Doral Group and Broward Group directly into their savings.

The scheme came to light when CareOne Dental acquired the Boynton Beach company in August 2021 and discovered through dental software that more than 80 patients had been defrauded.

A PBSO investigation revealed that in August 2021, Cruz and her husband transferred more than $550,000 from their dental offices to personal accounts, using the funds to purchase a $1.9 million home in Englewood.

After more than three years of investigation, PBSO said it intends to seize the Englewood home, cash found in safes, a cashier’s check and nine related bank accounts.

Cruz is charged with 18 counts of insurance fraud over $100,000, ten counts of insurance fraud over $20,000 but less than $100,000, and ten counts of theft from persons 65 and older , six counts of insurance fraud under $20,000, four counts of possession by non-dentists, one count of conspiracy to defraud $50,000 or more and one count of grand larceny $20,000 or more.

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