HOUSTON, Texas — A Houston woman who allegedly orchestrated one of the most brazen Medicare fraud schemes in recent memory has disappeared — and federal authorities are now offering a significant cash reward to anyone who helps bring her in.
Emylee Thai, 41, has been added to the FBI’s Most Wanted Fraudsters List after investigators accused her of running a laboratory connected to more than $100 million in health care fraud targeting Medicare, a federal health program serving millions of Americans.
Federal charges against Thai include conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and destruction of records.
According to investigators, Thai contracted with marketers around 2019 to refer signed doctors’ orders and patient DNA samples to her laboratory in exchange for a cut of Medicare reimbursements. The genetic tests ordered — each reimbursed by Medicare for thousands of dollars — were allegedly medically unnecessary and never used in patients’ treatment.
During that period, Thai’s laboratory billed Medicare approximately $142 million and collected roughly $95 million in payments, authorities said.
After her arrest, Thai was released on bond and required to wear a GPS ankle monitor. On December 8, 2022, the monitor was removed and authorities lost all contact with her. A federal arrest warrant was issued the following day.
Investigators later determined Thai had fled the United States aboard a private aircraft bound for Vietnam — using a false identity.
A second federal warrant was issued in July 2023. Thai remains at large.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $150,000 for information leading directly to her arrest.
Thai’s case is also tied to a sweeping nationwide health care fraud operation involving 455 defendants, including 90 medical professionals, across 45 states. Total alleged fraud across that investigation is estimated at $6.5 billion, spanning Medicare abuse, illegal opioid distribution, wound care schemes and Medicaid fraud.
Anyone with information on Thai’s location is urged to call the FBI tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
