BI arrests, deports US fraud suspect

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI) has arrested and deported a 60-year-old American tagged as a high-priority target by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the US Department of Justice announced yesterday.

Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado said Herbert Leon Kimble was apprehended by BI fugitive search unit agents and government intelligence officers in Pasig on June 11 and deported on June 18.

Kimble is the subject of a federal arrest warrant issued by a US District Court in South Carolina for orchestrating a healthcare fraud scheme that defrauded the US government’s healthcare programs of $1.2 billion.

Authorities said the scheme involved the fraudulent marketing and distribution of unnecessary orthopedic braces billed to Medicare.

“The Philippines will not serve as a sanctuary for fugitives seeking to evade justice in their home countries. This arrest demonstrates our commitment to working closely with international law enforcement partners to ensure that foreign nationals who pose a threat to public safety are located, arrested and removed from our communities,” Viado said.

According to GMA News Online, FBI Director Kash Patel thanked Philippine authorities and US law enforcement partners for their efforts in capturing Kimble.

“Fleeing the United States does not mean you can flee justice. Instead of facing accountability for his $1.2 billion Medicare fraud crimes in the US, Kimble fled to the Philippines hoping to escape justice. That plan failed,” US acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement.