That’s after an Anchorage grand jury indicted the dentists and the limited liability company that operates as Four Corners Dental Group Fairbanks on Dec. 16.
In addition to the business, the indictment names doctors Shane Rhoton, Andrew Anderson, Tanner Zylstra and Ernest Sorenson as defendants.
The defendants are each charged with one count of scheme to defraud $10,000-plus and one count of theft of $25,000 or more. They also each face three counts of medical assistance fraud for a value of $25,000 or more and two counts of medical assistance fraud for $500 or more.
As of Sunday, the court record was thin insofar as describing the circumstances and investigation that led to the charges.
But the indictment offers a few dates and a bit of detail. It says the alleged scheme to defraud occurred between January 2017 and July 2022, and that the single theft charge stems from an incident on March 18, 2018.
The indictment also says that between 2017 and 2022, the dentists knowingly submitted – or were an accomplice to submitting – Medicaid claims for various procedures or materials, including crowns, core build-ups, composites, removal of teeth and sealants.
The court document says those claims occurred with “reckless disregard” to patients’ lack of entitlement to the dental care. All of the alleged crimes reportedly happened in Fairbanks.
The indictment also lists the people who were examined before the Anchorage grand jury. It names investigator Jeannette Bartz as a witness, as well as three other dentists, two state Medicaid specialists and a forensic accountant.
According to the Alaska Department of Commerce corporations database, Rhoton, Sorensen and Anderson each have one-third ownership of Shane D. Rhoton LLC, which does business as Four Corners Dental Group.
The dentists were scheduled to be arraigned at the Nesbitt Courthouse in Anchorage on Jan. 7, but CourtView shows the date has been rescheduled for Jan. 8.