Illinois Doctor Sentenced to 34 Months in Prison for Evading $1.6M in Taxes and Committing Health Care Fraud

An Illinois doctor was sentenced today to 34 months in prison for committing health care fraud and for hiding assets and lying to the IRS about his ability to pay approximately $1.6 million in taxes, penalties, and interest.

The following is according to court documents and statements made in court: from approximately 2011 to 2017, Krishnaswami Sriram, of Lake Forest, Illinois, evaded payment of approximately $1.6 million he owed to the IRS. Among other evasive steps, Sriram transferred ownership, in name only, of two rental properties to his children without their knowledge while he continued to receive income from the properties. He also transferred approximately $700,000 from bank accounts he controlled in the United States to accounts in India. To fraudulently reduce the money he owed, Sriram submitted documents to the IRS as part of an offer-in-compromise that omitted an investment account in the United States, bank and investment accounts in India, and ownership of the rental properties. In total, Sriram caused a tax loss to the IRS of approximately $1.6 million.

Between 2012 and 2022, Sriram also caused false Medicare billings to be submitted for episodes of in-home physician care that did not occur. Specifically, Sriram claimed to provide care for Medicare beneficiaries on dates when those individuals were either deceased or resided at inpatient facilities other than their homes. Sriram’s false statements in medical records relating to these episodes of care resulted in $136,980.36 in false billings to Medicare.

In addition to his prison sentence, the court ordered Sriram to serve three years of supervised release and to pay approximately $1.7 million in restitution to the United States.

IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara E. Henderson for the Northern District of California prosecuted the case with assistance from former Trial Attorney Victor Yanz of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.