Long Island man pleads guilty to 'birth tourism' scheme targeting Turkish women
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LONG ISLAND - A Long Island man pleaded guilty Friday to conspiring to commit health care and wire fraud in connection to a so-called "birth tourism" scheme in Suffolk County between 2017 and 2020.
Authorities say that Ibrahim Aksakal helped pregnant Turkish women fraudulently enter the United States using tourist and business visas in order to give birth so that their children would obtain birthright citizenship and medical benefits.
Aksakal, who was arrested along with five other suspects in December of 2020, allegedly defrauded the Medicaid program of over $1,000,000 in benefits.
Over 100 women paid $7,500 each to give birth in the U.S. between 2017 and 2020, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York.
Authorities say Aksakal and his co-conspirators used two Turkish-language Facebook pages and a Turkish-language website using names like "My baby should be born in America," and "Giving Birth in America" to advertise their services.
The women would be told to cancel their pregnancies and would stay in one of seven "birth houses" that Aksakal maintained in Center Moriches, Dix Hills, East Northport, East Patchogue, Smithtown and West Babylon, New York.
"With today’s plea, Aksakal admits to an outrageous scheme in which he caused the Medicaid program to disburse more than $1 million in benefits for pregnant Turkish nationals who, masquerading as tourists, entered the United States under false pretenses to obtain birthright citizenship for their newborns," stated Acting U.S. Attorney Kasulis.
"This was an extremely complex, international investigation that led law enforcement to the core of this scheme right here in our backyard," stated Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini. "More than $1 million of American citizens’ hard-earned money was stolen through this conspiracy, and today’s plea holds its ringleader accountable. We will not tolerate the theft of taxpayer money in any form, and will continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners to target, arrest and prosecute anyone trying to take advantage of the system."
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