Nduka Lewis Ekpenyong, of Hewlett, charged with stealing $2.5M from Medicaid, using funds for luxury cars, mansion mortgage

A Hewlett businessman has been indicted in the alleged theft of more than $2.5 million in Medicaid funding as part of a scheme that state prosecutors said left some children without the nutritional supplements they needed.

Nduka Lewis Ekpenyong, 36, used the Medicaid money to buy a Bentley and a Range Rover, to make improvements at his Hewlett mansion and to pay the mortgage on it, state Attorney General Letitia James said Monday in announcing the arrest and indictment.

Court records show Ekpenyong was arrested June 18 and is due back in state Supreme Court in Brooklyn on Sept. 16. 

Ekpenyong, through his medical supply business, Duke Medical Inc. in Brooklyn, allegedly submitted more than 6,000 claims to Medicaid for PediaSure with peptide supplements between April 2023 and July 2025. Less than 10% of the purchases in the reimbursement claims were actually made, according to the attorney general.

“While Nduka Ekpenyong was buying luxury cars with money he allegedly stole from our state’s Medicaid program, families affected by his fraud were struggling to feed their children,” James said.

Ekpenyong, who also goes by the names Duke Ekpenyong and Lewis Ekpenyong, couldn’t be reached for comment on Monday, and no attorney was listed in court records as representing him. A voicemail left at Duke Medical wasn't returned.

Public disclosure of the case follows increased scrutiny of New York's Medicaid program by President Donald Trump's administration. 

On June 16, federal prosecutors sued state Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald, state Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri and a Georgia-based contractor alleging that the contractor was improperly hired and is fraudulently keeping part of the payments from a $10 billion senior home-care program. The defendants have denied the allegations.

In the Ekpenyong case, both he and his company were charged with one count of grand larceny in the first degree, one count of healthcare fraud in the second degree, and one count of scheme to defraud in the first degree, according to the criminal indictment.

If convicted, Ekpenyong faces up to 25 years in prison.

Ekpenyong allegedly instructed office staff at pediatric practices to alter doctors’ prescriptions for the basic PediaSure Nutritional Supplement and submit requests that would allow him to bill Medicaid for the more expensive, and medically unnecessary, PediaSure with peptides. PediaSure with peptides is intended only for children diagnosed with severe gastrointestinal issues, according to court filings.

Ekpenyong allegedly used proceeds from the fraudulent Medicaid billing scheme to support his Brooklyn restaurant, Eko Lounge. He also allegedly used some of the ill-gotten gains to construct a basketball court, outdoor swimming pool and spa, a marble fountain and two-level patio at his 6-bedroom home on Adams Road in Hewlett, the filings state.

Besides the indictment of Ekpenyong and his medical supply company, the attorney general is seeking civil asset forfeiture, which would allow the state to seize the assets bought with the stolen Medicaid money, such as the luxury automobiles. The action would also prevent Ekpenyong from selling his home.

The forfeiture action seeks $7.6 million in damages.

By James T. Madore

james.madore@newsday.comJamesTMadore

James T. Madore writes about Long Island business news including the economy, development, and the relationship between government and business. He previously served as Albany bureau chief.