The chief operating officer of a COVID-19 testing company pleaded guilty on September 23, 2026, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud in a scheme that submitted more than $500 million in claims for testing services that were never provided. Hasan "Lucas" Seyhun, 45, of Miami, Florida, was COO of New York-based Fast Lab Technologies, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Seyhun agreed to a forfeiture money judgment of $4,313,153, the amount prosecutors said he personally received from the scheme. The announcement did not give a sentencing date. Two co-defendants, the company's chief executive and its medical director, were charged in July 2025, and no conviction has been announced in their cases.
The case reaches beyond one company. Fast Lab billed Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE (the military health program), and private insurers, and it used real customers' insurance information to do it. That means people who never received the billed services may have fraudulent claims in their records without knowing it.
Free Tests Became Fake Claims
Fast Lab offered "no cost" COVID-19 tests that people could order online through its website. According to court documents, the company then used customers' insurance information to bill for services it never provided.
The false claims stated that antigen tests had been observed by medical professionals, that saliva samples had been collected by medical personnel, and that PCR laboratory testing had been done on those samples. In his plea agreement, Seyhun admitted that he conspired with the company's CEO and medical director to carry out the scheme. Prosecutors said the company routinely submitted claims before test kits had even been delivered to customers.
Those details help explain the size of the billing. A supervised test and a PCR lab analysis are billed as separate, more involved services than a test a person takes alone at home.
"At a time when Americans were scared for their families and their futures, Hasan Seyhun saw an opportunity to turn a national crisis into his own personal payday," said Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division.
U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. said, "Ripping off the American taxpayer is bad enough. Using the fear and isolation of the COVID pandemic to do it is sickening."
Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the FBI's Detroit Field Office, pointed to the cost to legitimate care. "A scheme of this magnitude undermines public trust and diverts critical healthcare dollars away from the people and programs who need it most," she said.
Billed Amounts Versus Money Actually Paid
The $500 million figure describes what was billed, not what was collected. Insurers often deny or reduce claims, so the amount paid in a fraud case can be much smaller than the amount billed.
When prosecutors charged the company's CEO and medical director in July 2025, they said Fast Lab had billed more than $500 million and received more than $50 million, according to the Justice Department's charging announcement. The Office of Personnel Management's inspector general, which investigates fraud involving the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, also worked on the case.
Seyhun's admitted share is smaller. He acknowledged that, as COO, he orchestrated the submission of millions of dollars in fraudulent claims that resulted in at least $35 million in illicit payments. His $4.3 million forfeiture reflects only the money he personally received. Forfeiture is separate from any restitution a judge may order at sentencing to repay victims.
Each figure measures something different. The $500 million is the scale of the billing, the $50 million is what the company was paid as of the 2025 charges, and the forfeiture is one defendant's personal take.
Two Co-Defendants Have Not Been Convicted
Chief executive Cemhan "Jimmy" Biricik, 46, of Boca Raton, Florida, and medical director Dr. Martin Perlin, 74, of Fairfield, Connecticut, were charged in 2025 with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and more than 50 counts of health care fraud. Prosecutors alleged that Perlin was the ordering physician for the tests even though he had no treating relationship with the patients.
Those charges remain allegations. When the charges were announced, the Justice Department said the defendants "are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt." Seyhun's plea is an admission about his own conduct and does not establish anyone else's guilt.
The FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Labor Department's Employee Benefits Security Administration and inspector general, the inspectors general of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of Personnel Management, and the Michigan attorney general's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit took part in the case, according to the Justice Department's announcements.
Checking Your Own Records for Suspicious Test Claims
People who ordered free COVID tests online during the pandemic may want to review old statements. Medicare enrollees can check their Medicare Summary Notices or their Medicare.gov account for tests, lab services, or visits they did not receive. People with private insurance or TRICARE can review their explanation of benefits statements the same way.
Warning signs include charges for supervised testing when a test was taken alone at home, lab fees for samples that were never mailed, or several test claims on dates when no test was used. A charge from an unfamiliar laboratory is worth questioning, even if it shows no balance due.
Suspected Medicare fraud can be reported by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), as Medicare's fraud reporting guidance explains, or through the HHS-OIG fraud hotline. Local Senior Medicare Patrol programs can also help beneficiaries review their statements and report suspected fraud.
Seyhun's plea means one senior executive has admitted to the core of the scheme. It does not settle how much insurers ultimately lost or whether the remaining defendants will be convicted.
Key Questions Answered
Who pleaded guilty? Hasan "Lucas" Seyhun, 45, of Miami, Florida, the chief operating officer of Fast Lab Technologies, pleaded guilty on September 23, 2026, to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
How much was billed and how much was paid? Prosecutors said the scheme billed more than $500 million and, as of the July 2025 charges, had been paid more than $50 million. Seyhun admitted orchestrating fraudulent claims that resulted in at least $35 million in illicit payments.
What is the $4.3 million forfeiture? It is the $4,313,153 that Seyhun personally received from the scheme and agreed to give up. It is separate from any restitution ordered at sentencing.
Have the other defendants been convicted? No conviction has been announced. The company's CEO and medical director were charged in July 2025 and are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
What services were billed but never provided? Antigen tests supposedly observed by medical professionals, saliva collection by medical personnel, and PCR lab testing, often billed before test kits were even delivered.
How can patients check whether they were affected? Review Medicare Summary Notices or insurance explanation of benefits statements for tests or lab services you did not receive, and report suspicious charges to 1-800-MEDICARE or the HHS-OIG hotline.
Published by Medicaldaily.com
