Karan Gupta sentenced to 3 years for defrauding Optum of over $1 million

Karan Gupta, a former senior director of data analytics at Optum, has been sentenced to three years in prison for his role in a fraud scheme that cost the company over $1 million. Gupta was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering following a federal jury trial.

The scheme involved Gupta arranging a “no-show” position for a longtime friend, Shagraf Kaul, in 2015. Despite lacking necessary qualifications, Kaul was hired as a data engineering manager and received a six-figure salary and bonuses for nearly four years without performing any work. In exchange, Kaul allegedly returned more than 60% of his salary to Gupta through kickbacks.

Gupta used a separate checking account to conceal the money transfers, which were initially made via cash deposits. The fraudulent activity was uncovered after Optum terminated Gupta in November 2019 due to his involvement in a separate fraud scheme. Kaul has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is currently awaiting sentencing.