Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced the arrest of Jesus Cantu-Trevino by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Office of the Attorney General, in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security in Edinburg, Texas. Cantu-Trevino faces charges of Conspiracy to Commit Alien Smuggling.
According to authorities, Cantu-Trevino allegedly masterminded a scheme using a fictitious assisted living facility as a cover and Skyline EMS ambulances to unlawfully transport individuals past U.S. border checkpoints. The case was investigated by Sergeant Stephen Dishong, Investigative Auditor Audra Ruble, and Captain Stacey Overbay of Paxton’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services. Assistant United States Attorney Liesel Roscher is handling the prosecution.
Attorney General Paxton condemned the exploitation of taxpayer-funded healthcare systems for illegal immigration purposes, emphasizing that such actions would face legal consequences.
Since 2021, the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has recovered over $612 million in settlements, judgments, and restitution for Texas taxpayers. The unit's funding comprises 75 percent from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant totaling $20,944,200 for fiscal year 2023, with the remaining 25 percent, totaling $6,981,395, provided by the State of Texas. Over the past three years, for every dollar of state funding, the MFCU has recovered more than $49 for taxpayers.
