A Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) investigator and crime analyst helped stop a $400 million Medicare fraud scheme, according to a statement released on Mar. 27. The case involved Nikolai Buzolin, a Russian national living in Houston in 2025, who is accused of filing fake Medicare claims and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
The case highlights the importance of cooperation between local and federal agencies in tackling large-scale health care fraud. Buzolin allegedly created a durable medical equipment company and used stolen identities from patients and doctors to submit fraudulent claims to health plans that manage Medicare Part C. Authorities said he opened eight bank accounts where he deposited $1.7 million received through reimbursements.
“A few of the patients checked their explanation of benefits and noticed that they were getting medical equipment that they didn’t need. And it was coming from doctors they’d never met,” said TDI Fraud Unit investigator, Sgt. Kevin Mannion.
Mannion is part of the FBI Task Force in Houston that investigated Buzolin’s activities. When law enforcement attempted to arrest him at his home, Buzolin had already fled the area. A TDI crime analyst later tracked his car to Los Angeles, where local FBI agents arrested him as he was about to board a flight to Russia.
The investigation involved collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Texas Office of the Attorney General alongside TDI investigators and analysts.
“TDI works with federal, state, and local partners to follow cases wherever they go, whether it’s California or right here in Texas,” Mannion said. “We track them down, we shut them down, and we help dismantle these criminal activities.”
