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HOMES EVERY WEEK! Times of Ti
May 26, 2018
suncommunitynews.com
• EDITION •
At least 8 arrested in alleged criminal scheme to defraud Medicaid
Pakistani nationals picked up in scheme By Pete DeMola EDITOR
ELIZABETHTOWN | At least eight people connected with area taxi cab companies have been arrested and arraigned on charges related to what authorities allege is a wide-ranging criminal conspiracy to defraud Medicaid. Eight suspects, all Pakistani nationals, appeared at the Essex County Courthouse on Tuesday and were charged with numerous felonies following raids of at least three convenience stores in Ticonderoga earlier that morning. Those arraigned include Mayam Qaiser, Saleem Hayat, Muhammad Jahangir, Khurram Gondal, Sanuallah Chadder, Kalid Chadder, Waqas Nauman and Qaiser Gondal. The eight were partially arraigned on nu-
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merous felony charges Tuesday, and court proceedings will continue on Wednesday. The investigation was coordinated by the New York State Police and the Office of the Inspector General, with assistance from numerous local and federal agencies.
cluding in Essex County, where county “We’re looking at $780,000 alleged to be offi cials have long fi elded public safety owed,” said Essex County District Attorney complaints and other allegations of ne- Kristy Sprague. farious behavior. Hayat was also charged with failing to Detailed charges were only available provide workers’ compensation, a class E for Saleem Hayat, owner of Moriah Cab felony. Service in Port Henry. Hayat was remanded to the Essex County According to court documents read by Public Safety Building on $250,000 bail, and WIDESPREAD ALLEGATIONS Hon. Essex County Judge Richard Meyer, will appear in court on Wednesday. Hayat “knowingly stole $50,000” when he Like his co-defendants, Hayat was ordered The Sun has spent years exclusively report- allegedly falsified provider payments to to surrender travel documents because muling on allegations of criminal and financial the state Department of Health (DOH) tiple trips to Pakistan have indicated he may malfeasance surrounding the medical trans- between July 2015 and May 2017 for Med- present a flight risk, said Sprague. portation industry. icaid taxi services. The roundup marks the fi rst arrests in Hayat, who also serves as the manager of Essex County directly tied to the burgeon- Port Henry Mobil Mart, was charged with EARLY OUTLINES ing industry which has blossomed in recent one count of second degree grand larceny, Eight suspects were arraigned in Essex County Court on Tuesday and charged with numerous felonies following raids of at least three convenience stores in Ticonderoga. Photo by Pete DeMola years due to state reforms that have shuttled Medicaid patients from county-run transport into private cabs as a cost-savings measure. The business is largely unregulated, in-
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More than 1,400 fans came to Ti to see William Shatner
•
6/22/18 I know all you your secrets Ticonderoga students. It's time for you all to be my puppets ...or I'll let out your secrets. Time to pay up for you sins
By Lohr McKinstry STA FF W RITER
TICONDEROGA | The “Captain on the Bridge” visit by “Star Trek” star William Shatner to Ticonderoga was a big success, organizers say. The weekend event brought more than 1,400 fans of the show to the town and filled hotels and restaurants. The undertaking was organized by super-fan James Cawley, who has recreated the show’s sets at the Star Trek Original
SCHOOL, POLICE REACT TO THREAT
Katy Elizabeth is probing the waters of Lake Champlain
By Lohr McKinstry STA FF W RITER
TICONDEROGA | Reacting to an apparent social media threat on Tuesday, some parents of Ticonderoga-Elementary-Middle School students picked up their children early from school. » School threat Cont. on pg. 5
By Lohr McKinstry STA FF W RITER
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“I’ll be scouring the lake,” she said. “The drone needs repairs, so I have to take it to Burlington, but I’ll be out in the boat as much as possible. Something will turn up.” She recently was successful in getting the Moriah Town Council to pass a resolution protecting the Champ creature in Lake Champlain.
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Series Set Tour in downtown Ticonderoga. “I have seen William Shatner many times over the years at conventions, this past weekend I got to meet him,” Cawley said. “What a joy to discover that your hero is a warm, caring, generous man.” Shatner started his visit with a $1,500-a-person one-onone meeting with fans on the Starship Enterprise bridge, and ended with an $85-a-ticket one-man show in the Ticonderoga High School auditorium. “He was so very personal and engaging not only to me, but to the many fans who came to see him on the very sets he made famous 50 odd years ago,” Cawley said. “He smiled, shook hands, spoke and signed autographs for everyone. I was quite simply in awe.”
MORIAH | Champ Search Director Katy Elizabeth is looking forward to spending the summer aboard her boat on Lake Champlain. But she won’t be fishing or relaxing in the sun. Instead, she’ll be scanning the lake with binoculars and electronic equipment, including the Champ Search drone with high-resolution camera.
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» Medicaid fraud Cont. on pg. 7
Big Champ summer predicted
Ticonderoga schools got some extra protection
ASE Certified Technicians John West, Proprietor – NATIONWIDE WARRANTY ON REPAIRS –
Details slowly emerged during court proceedings on Tuesday, but Sprague offered the initial outlines of a sprawling conspiracy.
Star Trek weekend filled town
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a class C felony; one count of maintaining false business records, a class E felony, and one count of falsifying business records, a class E felony.