NYC Man Pleads Guilty in Baby Formula Scheme

He faces up to 20 years in prison.

A Staten Island man has pleaded guilty over a scheme involving nearly $2 million worth of baby formula.

Prosecutors said Vladislav Kotlyar, 43, obtained prescriptions and medical records for infants prescribed specialty formula.

He forged those records to secure formula, then falsely claimed the shipments were incorrect or damaged in order to obtain more.

Kotlyar subsequently sold the formula, while he and his co-conspirators submitted more than $1.9 million in fraudulent claims to insurers.

The Justice Department noted that parts of the scheme coincided with a widely publicized formula shortage in the U.S.

Kotlyar pleaded guilty to mail fraud charges and paid nearly $1.74 million in forfeitures and restitution.

He faces up to 20 years in prison.

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