Defendants Plead Not Guilty to Medicaid, SNAP Fraud

A Virgin Islands magistrate judge heard a slew of not-guilty pleas Thursday afternoon, one day after the high-profile arrests of 11 people on St. Croix in connection with an alleged Medicaid and SNAP scheme, which prosecutors say cost the territory more than three hundred thousand dollars.

Akim Davis, Carmen Saldana-Nunez, Karen Blyden, Shane Gaston and Sharon Olivia Henry face charges of Medicaid fraud, making fraudulent claims upon the government, and accessing a computer for fraudulent purposes. In addition to those three charges, Doenyka Lewis, Kenera Frederick, Lisa Minelli Montanez, Shanoya Hendrickson, Shantenysha Davis and Clarissa Nunez have been accused of embezzlement or falsification of public records.

Their appearances at the V.I. Superior Court on St. Croix came after images and video of their arrests — several of which took place at the Human Services Department in Frederiksted — circulated widely on social media. Prosecutors have said the charges stem from a 20-month investigation by the V.I. Justice Department’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit into DHS employees who allegedly used government computers to manipulate Medicaid and SNAP eligibility.

“While there are ongoing federal investigations into public corruption,” V.I. Attorney General Gordon Rhea said in a statement Wednesday, “it is important for the community to understand that the Government of the Virgin Islands is also actively and independently investigating corruption within its own systems.”