Former Chicago medical supply company executive returns from Dubai to face charges in Loretto Hospital fraud scheme
A former Chicago medical supply company owner has returned to the U.S. to face charges accusing him of taking part in a $15 million embezzlement scheme at Loretto Hospital.
Federal prosecutors said Sameer Suhail had fled to Dubai after he was indicted in 2024, but was arrested on Tuesday at O'Hare International Airport.
He and three former Loretto Hospital executives – former chief executive officer George Miller, former chief financial officer Anosh Ahmed, and former chief transformation officer Heather Bergdahl – embezzle more than $15 million using fake invoices and vendor payments during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Miller, Ahmed, and Bergdahl are accused of steering vendor contracts and other Loretto business to Suhail in exchange for cash. Prosecutors said they approved payments for goods and services that were never provided.
Suhail pleaded not guilty on Wednesday and was released on $5 million bond, ordered to remain on home confinement.
According to court records, Bergdahl and Miller are set to plead guilty next week.
Ahmed fled the country after he was indicted, but was arrested in January in Serbia, where he is fighting extradition efforts.
Ahmed also is accused of stealing $290 million through a COVID testing scheme by submitting nearly $900 million in false claims for COVID tests.