TWO FLORIDA MEN SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON IN $897,405 MEDICARE FRAUD SCHEME INVOLVING KANSAS PHARMACY

TOPEKA, KANSAS — Two Florida men have each been sentenced to two years in federal prison for participating in a healthcare fraud scheme that used a Kansas pharmacy to submit thousands of fraudulent Medicare claims for medically unnecessary prescriptions. The operation generated $897,405 in improper payments over approximately six months, with a third defendant awaiting sentencing.

Steven Anthony Churchill, 39, of Boca Raton, Florida, and Samson Kollelil Solomon, 28, of Pompano Beach, Florida, each received a 24-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, mail fraud, and wire fraud. A third participant, Fawn Lickteig, 46, of Lawrence, Kansas, also pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge and is scheduled to be sentenced on November 10, 2026.

According to federal court records, Churchill purchased Free State Pharmacy in Lawrence in March 2020, placing the business under the name of another alleged participant who has since died. Although the pharmacy operated primarily through mail-order prescription fulfillment, it represented itself to Medicare as a retail pharmacy.

The business arrangement also involved Lickteig’s company, Pharmacy Consulting, which Free State Pharmacy retained to prepare and submit enrollment applications and other documentation to Medicare and government healthcare entities. The pharmacy’s enrollment representations became part of an operation that ultimately submitted thousands of fraudulent reimbursement claims.

Investigators determined that Free State Pharmacy obtained patient information from telemedicine companies, including names and residential addresses. Pharmacy employees then filled and shipped medications associated with prescriptions issued by physicians who had not physically examined the patients or conducted appropriate telemedicine consultations.

Some patients received medical products they had not anticipated. According to prosecutors, the pharmacy received telephone calls from individuals questioning the unexpected deliveries, and some patients returned the products. Despite these indications that prescriptions were being fulfilled without appropriate patient involvement, the fraudulent billing operation continued.

The scheme emphasized financial returns rather than established medical necessity. Free State Pharmacy prioritized prescriptions according to the reimbursement amounts Medicare would pay, concentrating much of its activity on expensive dermatological medications. These products offered substantial reimbursement opportunities, making them particularly profitable when dispensed through fraudulent claims.

Although the pharmacy was located in Lawrence, most of the Medicare beneficiaries involved were Florida residents. Federal authorities identified 948 claims associated with Florida beneficiaries and 381 involving Kansas residents. The geographic distribution reflected an operation that extended well beyond the pharmacy’s immediate service area.

The investigation also examined the physicians connected to the prescriptions. Of the 40 prescribing doctors who worked with Free State Pharmacy, 15 were already under investigation at the time for referring medically unnecessary services. The involvement of physicians under investigation raised further concerns about the validity of prescriptions used to obtain Medicare reimbursement, although being investigated does not establish that those physicians committed criminal offenses.

Between September 2020 and February 2021, Churchill, Solomon, and Lickteig participated in submitting 2,699 false claims to Medicare. The fraudulent submissions resulted in $897,405 in payments to Free State Pharmacy for prescriptions that did not satisfy the requirements for legitimate reimbursement.

The sentences were announced October 16, 2026, by U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser of the District of Kansas. The prosecution follows guilty pleas by all three named defendants, distinguishing this case from one involving unresolved criminal allegations. Churchill and Solomon have received their prison sentences, while Lickteig’s punishment remains for the federal court to determine.

The FBI and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Walton and Lindsey Debenham prosecuted the defendants on behalf of the federal government.

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