A 31-count federal indictment charges a Jacksonville pharmacy owner and an accountant in an alleged $51 million health care fraud scheme built on prescriptions for HIV post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced the charges Nov. 12.
Charlie Bernard Griffin III, 61, of Jacksonville, is charged with health care fraud and money laundering. Ethelbert Chinenye Nwanegbo, 47, of St. Johns, is charged with money laundering. “Each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each count,” the office said.
An indictment is an accusation. Both men are presumed innocent unless and until they’re proven guilty in court.
How Prosecutors Say the Jacksonville PEP Scheme Worked
Griffin owned First Coast Community Development, or FCCD, “which operated a pharmacy in Jacksonville,” according to the release. Prosecutors say FCCD worked with a marketing company owned by Jonathan Gholston.
“Representatives of the marketing company set up tents and tables in Jacksonville, generally in low-income areas,” the release says. Prosecutors allege they offered free government-sponsored cellphones to people who stopped, and collected identifying and health insurance information in return.
FCCD then filled prescriptions for “HIV post-exposure prophylactic medications,” prosecutors say. The prescriptions were authorized by Rashan Jones, a nurse practitioner who the government says “had never seen, spoken with, or performed any manner of evaluation, examination, or test” on the people listed.
To get claims paid, prosecutors allege, FCCD falsely used a diagnosis code claiming the person “had, or had been exposed to, HIV or a sexually transmitted disease.”
“The people that received these medications did not need them and did not want them,” U.S. Attorney Gregory Kehoe said Thursday, News4JAX reported.
Kickbacks, $14 Million and Money Laundering Allegations
According to the indictment as described in the release, “FCCD would pay the marketing company $200 for every person who was referred for HIV medications.” The payment came only when an insurer paid the claim, which prosecutors call an illegal kickback. The company typically paid marketers $50 for a referral, also conditional on an insurer paying the claim, prosecutors say.
The alleged scheme produced tens of thousands of claims, the release says, with reimbursements “totaling approximately $51 million.” Federal officials put Medicare losses at about $11.5 million and Medicaid losses at about $12.5 million, according to the station. Kehoe said the scheme ran from 2023 through late 2025.
“Griffin received a total of approximately $14 million in proceeds,” the release says.
Prosecutors allege Nwanegbo, a Jacksonville accountant, moved the money through accounts he controlled and sent it back to Griffin and an unnamed co-conspirator “after retaining a money laundering fee of approximately 10%.” The government is seeking forfeiture from both men. From Griffin, that includes about $8.2 million seized from his bank accounts, three properties and four vehicles.
“The medical community in Jacksonville brought it to our attention,” Kehoe said, according to News4JAX. He gave no further detail.
Gholston, Chester and Jones Agreed to Plead Guilty
Gholston, FCCD pharmacist Albert Chester and Jones face separate cases. “Gholston, Chester, and Jones were previously charged separately and each of them agreed to plead guilty,” the release says.
The HHS Office of Inspector General posted a March 3 notice of a guilty plea by Jonathan Simeon Gholston, 35, of Jacksonville, to conspiring to receive kickbacks for referring Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries for HIV prophylactic medications. That notice says his company “entered into an agreement with a Jacksonville pharmacy to market HIV post-exposure prophylactic medications.” It carries a maximum of five years in prison. No sentencing date was listed.
Investigators interviewed people who received the drugs. “Virtually all of them said, ‘We never asked for it, we never requested it,'” Kehoe said, News4JAX reported. Officials said they don’t know how many people actually took the medication.
How PEP Prevents HIV
PEP is medication that can prevent HIV after a possible exposure. CDC guidance says to start as soon as possible, ideally within 24 hours and no later than 72 hours, and continue treatment for 28 days.
A clinician should assess the exposure and arrange baseline HIV testing. The CDC says the first dose should not be delayed while waiting for test results when PEP is indicated. Anyone concerned about a recent exposure can seek urgent medical care.
PEP is different from PrEP, which is used before possible exposure for ongoing HIV prevention. The allegations in this case concern prescriptions, billing and kickbacks, not the effectiveness of HIV prevention medication.
