A Cuban man charged in a $4.2 million Medicare fraud scheme is being held as a flight risk after officials said he tried to flee the U.S. on a Jet Ski.
A federal judge in Miami ordered Ernesto Cruz Graveran, 54, of Hialeah, to be detained pending trial Monday, according to court records.
He has been charged with health care fraud.
Investigators learned last month that Cruz Graveran was planning to travel to Havana and approached him several days before his flight, the complaint said.
Cruz Graveran agreed to cooperate with a criminal investigation during an interview, and officials said they took his passport.
Cruz Graveran was aboard the personal watercraft with a person known to law enforcement as a migrant smuggler.
Investigators say the Jet Ski was outfitted with a special fuel cell for long trips and was carrying extra food and water bottles. »