A former NFL player turned laboratory owner has been found guilty in federal court for orchestrating a massive genetic testing fraud scheme that targeted Medicare and generated hundreds of millions of dollars in false claims.
On Friday (February 20), Federal prosecutors said Keith J. Gray, who owned Axis Professional Labs LLC and Kingdom Health Laboratory LLC, was convicted by a jury in Dallas on multiple charges tied to fraudulent cardiovascular genetic testing. Authorities said the scheme involved billing Medicare for tests that patients did not need, resulting in approximately $328 million in claims.
Gray is a former captain of the UConn Huskies football team, where he played center from 2004 to 2008, according to UConn Athletics. He temporarily played for the Carolina Panthers, but injuries sidelined his NFL career.
According to evidence presented during trial, Gray worked with marketers who recruited Medicare beneficiaries and obtained their DNA samples and personal information. Prosecutors said those marketers were paid illegal kickbacks in exchange for referrals, while telemarketing companies helped identify potential patients and pressured doctors into approving testing orders, often without legitimate medical justification.
Investigators also said Gray attempted to disguise the kickbacks by creating fake contracts and invoices that falsely described the payments as legitimate business expenses. In some cases, the payments were labeled as software costs or loans that did not actually exist.
Text messages shown to jurors highlighted how Gray and an associate discussed the profits from the operation, including one exchange in which they joked about the large sums of money coming in. Medicare ultimately paid roughly $54 million of the fraudulent claims, according to prosecutors.
Authorities said Gray used some of the proceeds to fund an extravagant lifestyle, including purchasing high-end vehicles such as a six-figure Dodge Ram truck and a luxury Mercedes-Benz SUV. The jury found Gray guilty of conspiracy, violating federal anti-kickback laws, and money laundering.
He faces significant prison time, with each count carrying a potential sentence of up to 10 years. A judge will determine his punishment at a later sentencing hearing.
The investigation involved multiple federal and state agencies, including the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Officials said the conviction is part of a broader effort to crack down on health care fraud, which continues to cost federal programs billions of dollars each year.