A former Bank of America banker pleaded guilty to taking part in a scheme that laundered over $8 million on behalf of a transnational crime organization, the Justice Department said Tuesday.
Renat Abramov, working as a relationship manager at a bank branch in Sheepshead Bay, New York, aided a criminal enterprise that allegedly submitted more than $10 billion in fraudulent Medicare claims by stealing the identities of over a million Americans nationwide, the DOJ said.
Abramov opened bank accounts for people who posed as owners of fake medical equipment companies by presenting forged corporate registration documents, the DOJ alleged. The accounts were used to deposit fraudulently obtained checks from Medicare and legitimate insurance companies.
Members of the criminal enterprise then transferred the funds into offshore accounts and cryptocurrency, according to the DOJ.
Abramov began working for Bank of America in 2019 after working for a year and a half at Santander, according to his LinkedIn profile. In 2023 and 2024, he opened several accounts for fraudulent companies as part of the criminal enterprise, according to a statement filed by FBI Special Agent Catherine Tota.
His employment at Bank of America ended when, after several of his co-conspirators were arrested, he booked a one-way flight to Moscow without asking for a leave of absence from work, Tota said.
“We have zero tolerance for inappropriate behavior. We fully cooperated with law enforcement on this matter,” a Bank of America spokesperson said Friday.
Abramov pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and faces up to 20 years in prison. Sentencing is set for April 20.
