Despicable crimes paid for couple's lavish lifestyle that they flaunted online while gold chain-wearing husband fleeced $1BILLION from taxpayers

By LAUREN ACTON-TAYLOR, US NEWS REPORTER Published: 21:43, 14 May 2026 | Updated: 21:49, 14 May 2026 A healthcare software company CEO was found guilty of fleecing around $1 billion of  taxpayer cash in a 'cold, calculated' scheme, all while flaunting his and his wife's lavish lifestyle online.  Brett Blackman, 42, was convicted of fraud on Wednesday after he and co-conspirators conned Medicare patients with bogus prescriptions and unnecessary medical expenditures from around 2015 to 2020. HealthSplash owner and CEO Blackman and his co-conspirators 'aggressively targeted hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries to get them to accept medically unnecessary products including orthotic braces, according to the Department of Justice.  'This illegitimate operation stole more than $1 billion from American taxpayers - including hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries. This was [a] cold, calculated, industrial-scale theft targeting the sick and elderly, coercing vulnerable people into buying unnecessary medical equipment,' the DOJ stated. Blackman, a Kansas native, used Power Mobility Doctor Rx, LLC, which was acquired by HealthSplash in 2017, to generate false and fraudulent doctor's orders for durable medical equipment and prescriptions.  Blackman was accused of orchestrating a 'massive telemarketing scheme' that utilized foreign call centers and spam mailers to target senior citizens and defraud the government health care benefits programs, according to Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald of the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division.  'The beneficiaries were targeted to provide their personally identifiable information and accept braces, pain creams, and other items through misleading mailers, television advertisements, and calls from offshore call centers,' the indictment obtained by the Daily Mail said.   The scheme, described by the DOJ as one of the most 'egregious fraud schemes in Florida history,' saw doctors paid to sign orders and prescriptions 'without any meaningful interaction' or no interaction with the patient.   Brett Blackman, 42 seen with a romantic partner after splitting from his wife in 2017, was convicted of fraud on Wednesday after he and co-conspirators conned Medicare patients with bogus prescriptions and unnecessary medical expenditures Blackman used Power Mobility Doctor Rx, LLC, which was acquired by HealthSplash in 2017, to generate false and fraudulent doctor's orders for durable medical equipment and prescriptions HealthSplash owner and CEO Blackman and his co-conspirators 'aggressively targeted hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries to get them to accept medically unnecessary products including orthotic braces' Blackman was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks and conspiracy to defraud the United States and to make false statement in connection with health care matters Blackman, seen above, faces at least 20 years in prison. Blackman's co-conspirator, 79-year-old Gary Cox (not pictured), was convicted in an earlier trial and sentenced to 15 years behind bars.  'Doctors signed these orders and prescriptions without regard to whether the equipment was medically necessary,' the release stated, adding that, in certain cases, the doctor would falsely claim to have performed in-person exams on the patient.  Blackman and his co-conspirators were accused of connecting pharmacies, DME suppliers and marketers with telemedicine companies that would accept illegal kickbacks and bribes 'in exchange for signed doctors' orders and took a cut for themselves in exchange for the referrals.  'The DME suppliers and pharmacies that were paying illegal kickbacks for these orders billed Medicare and other insurers for more than $1 billion,' the DOJ continued.  'Medicare and the other insurers paid more than $450 million based on these claims. According to evidence presented at trial, Blackman and his co-conspirators concealed the scheme through sham contracts and by manipulating the doctors’ orders to avoid Medicare audits.'  'Fraud of this magnitude drains vital resources and jeopardizes the care promised to our service members, retirees and their families,' Special Agent in Charge Jason Sargenski of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Defense Criminal Investigative Service said.  Blackman was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks and conspiracy to defraud the United States and to make false statement in connection with health care matters.  His co-conspirator, 79-year-old Gary Cox, was convicted in an earlier trial and sentenced to 15 years behind bars. Blackman on the other hand faces at least 20 years in prison. Cox was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, three counts of health care fraud, conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks, and conspiracy to defraud the United States and make false statements in connection with health care matters, according to the DOJ.  Blackman is set to be sentenced on August 26, 2026, at 10am, according to online records.   The Daily Mail reached out to the National Fraud Enforcement Division, the Office of the Attorney General, Blackman's Defense Attorney Jenny Wilson and attempted to reach Blackman's ex-wife for comment. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. 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