MIAMI (AP) - A South Florida man pleaded not guilty to conspiring to launder tens of millions of Medicare fraud dollars, which federal prosecutors say were funneled into the Cuban banking system.
Cuban-native Oscar Sanchez appeared at a hearing Friday in U.S. District Court in Miami. His attorney entered the plea.
Sanchez is a U.S. citizen. He is being held in federal custody because prosecutors consider him a flight risk.
They say the 46-year-old provided cash to the Medicare fraud ringleaders in exchange for a fee. They also said Sanchez conspired to send money from the scheme to shell companies in Canada before it was passed on through a Trinidad bank to Cuba.
Prosecutors are seeking more than $22 million in property from Sanchez. If convicted, he could face 13 years in prison.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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