She embezzles nearly 400,000 euros: a pharmacist defrauds social security with a diabetes treatment

Elle détourne près de 400 000 euros. (illustration)

This Tuesday, September 3, 2024, a 40-year-old pharmacist was interviewed by investigators in Toulouse. She is suspected of being behind a scam amounting to 400,000 euros.

If she had not aroused suspicion for nearly two years, a pharmacist will have to answer for certain facts. This Tuesday, the Toulouse police questioned this 40-year-old woman who could have invoiced very expensive medications in order to receive reimbursements of several hundred thousand euros, report our colleagues at La Dépêche.

A fruitful technique

400,000 euros, that is indeed the estimated amount of the scam. It all started in December 2021, when she noticed gaps in the drug reimbursement system. The woman who runs this pharmacy in Colomiers, west of Toulouse, thinks she's slipping through the cracks and doesn't believe in the CPAM's frequent checks.

For example, she invoices for boxes of Crysvita, a drug used to treat bone diseases and diabetes, but the pharmacist can't sell them because they've never been purchased. Each box costs between 2,000 and 8,000 euros. His scheme would therefore have gone unnoticed until the end of April 2023.

The CPAM ended up carrying out an inspection and quickly became aware of the scam. In total, nearly 400,000 euros were allegedly embezzled. Although the accused admitted the facts during her hearing, she did not give any explanations as to the reasons, notes the local daily.

Left free for the moment, the justice system will have to decide whether or not the case will be referred to the criminal court.