A Mission resident has been taken into federal custody on charges of health care fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani.

Hamdani said 46-year-old Juan Martin Flores is accused in connection with a scheme to defraud the Texas Medicaid Program. He is scheduled to make a court appearance on Friday.

The indictment against Flores was returned on Aug. 7 and was unsealed upon his arrest on Sept. 12. It alleges he submitted or caused the submission of over 15,000 fraudulent claims to Medicaid for services that were never provided, according to Hamdani. The indictment further alleges Flores used the personal information of Medicaid beneficiaries without their consent to facilitate the fraudulent billing scheme.

According to the charges, the claims resulted in approximately $2 million in Medicaid payments between 2018 and 2022. Flores also submitted claims that he provided counseling services at his office in Brownsville. However, he allegedly never actually rendered those services, according to Hamdani.

Flores is charged with 10 counts of health care fraud, each carrying a possible 10-year maximum sentence and up to a $250,000 fine.

He is also facing three counts of aggravated identity theft. If convicted, he faces a mandatory two years in federal prison, which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed.