The ringleader of a Medicaid fraud ring in Florida and his accomplice were arrested Wednesday, according to Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody.

Moody’s office announced that the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit was able to shut down the fraud ring, which stole millions of dollars from Medicaid.

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Investigators said the group’s ringleader — 61-year-old Clive McIntosh — owned and operated Dynamiks Health Care, which provided respiratory, physical and occupational therapy to Medicaid patients.

In 2013, McIntosh recruited James Tenpenny as a respiratory therapist, and McIntosh used Tenpenny’s Medicaid Provider Number to bill Medicaid between 2014 and 2019, court records show.

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Another of McIntosh’s accomplices, Tymeka Hester, was also recruited as a Medicaid provider in 2018, investigators explained. Hester’s MPN was used to bill Medicaid from 2018 - 2021, detectives said.

However, court records show that Tenpenny never actually treated any patients, and only one patient could be traced back to Hester’s care.

Instead, McIntosh received the funds from Medicaid by using Tenpenny’s and Hester’s MPNs before giving some of those funds to Tenpenny and Hester as kickbacks, investigators stated.

In total, the scheme stole more than $3.5 million from Medicaid between June 2018 and August 2020, investigators added.

Tenpenny was arrested in 2022, but McIntosh and Hester were arrested on Wednesday, Moody announced.

“In just two years’ time, the defendants stole $3.5 million from the Medicaid program — ripping off Florida taxpayers,” Moody said. “Their elaborate fraudulent billing scheme, which also involved money laundering, spanned multiple counties until my MFCU investigators, working with local and federal law enforcement agencies, shut it down.”

McIntosh faces charges of racketeering, Medicaid fraud and money laundering. He is held on bond of over $2 million. If convicted, he faces up to 90 years in prison and $30,000 in fines.

Meanwhile, Hester faces charges of Medicaid fraud and scheming to defraud. If convicted, Hester faces up to 60 years in prison and $20,000 in fines.

Kenny McIntosh wore the Georgia logo for a final time on Saturday as he played in the Senior Bowl. But that didn’t stop the Georgia running back from getting one final dig in on the rival Florida Gators.

On game day, McIntosh was interacting with fans. One asked why he didn’t go to Florida. McIntosh is from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and signed with Georgia as a member of the 2019 recruiting class.

“Man I wanted to win. I’m a Florida boy but I wanted to win,” McIntosh told the fan.

“I’m a Florida boy but I wanted to win.” pic.twitter.com/QMvWyye0A6

— Jon Tweets Sports (@jontweetssports) February 5, 2023

McIntosh had his best season at Georgia as a senior, posting career bests in rushing yards (829), receiving yards (504) and touchdowns (12). McIntosh led the team in rushing and finished third in receiving yards and receptions.

His best games came in wins over Oregon, Kentucky and the Gators. Despite a fumble, McIntosh earned praise from head coach Kirby Smart for his play that day. He finished the win with 90 rushing yards and two touchdowns, as the Bulldogs won 42-20. McIntosh finished his career with a 3-1 record against the Gators.

“I told him he’s a bad MFer. He’s tough, he’s physical,” Smart said of what he told McIntosh during the Florida game. “He gets after it and he responded. That’s what I talk about. You’ve got an opportunity to show resiliency—one of our four DNA characteristics. I promise you every NFL scout and every Georgia fan watching will remember the way he responded. He ran the ball with just a vicious attitude. A contact-seeking running back.”

Related: Georgia tailback Kenny McIntosh updates Senior Bowl injury, shares parting thoughts

McIntosh was one of four Bulldogs to compete in the Senior Bowl this week, along with safety Christopher Smith, offensive tackle Warren McLendon and kicker Jack Podlesny. McLendon did not play in the game due to injury, while McIntosh was unable to finish Saturday’s game due to a hyperextended elbow. He finished the game with two carries for nine yards and a six-yard reception.

Fresno State quarterback Jake Haener won MVP efforts, as his side beat Smith and McIntosh’s team 27-10.

Georgia won back-to-back national championships thanks to McIntosh’s ability and an NFL team will surely find some use for his skillset. Given his ability as a receiver, most see McIntosh as a third or fourth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

McIntosh will have more opportunities to impress NFL teams at both the NFL combine and Georgia’s pro day. The Bulldogs had 15 players taken in last year’s NFL draft, including running backs James Cook and Zamir White.

More Georgia football stories from around DawgNation

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Consul General to the United States Rondy “Luta” McIntosh says the recent Vincy Day Picnic in Central Florida brought back “nostalgic feeling.”

Scores of Vincentians and other well-wishers came together for a day of camaraderie, fun, food and frolic, Vincy picnic style,” the New York-based McIntosh told Caribbean Life about the picnic that was organized by the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Central Florida Organization (SVGCFO) and held, on Saturday, May 13, at the Bill Frederick Park in Orlando.

“The feeling at the event was that of a family reunion, where long time neighbors, past students, villagers, former work colleagues, school mates and other forms of broken or distant relationships grabbed the opportunity to rekindle that long lost togetherness,” added McIntosh. “The picnic gave me that nostalgic feeling, the feeling we experienced as youths growing up in close knitted communities, where we would go to the neighbor’s house for food, and they would always welcome us with open arms.

“It was a manifestation of that type of energy and neighborly love, as people were moving around, mingling, reconnecting, exchanging pleasantries and partaking in the food brought to the picnic by those present,” continued the consul general, stating that he met many familiar and new faces, “who seemed eager” to meet him in person “to express their pride and satisfaction with the work done thus far” since his assumption of the position last August.

McIntosh said he was given the opportunity to address the gathering and outlined some of his plan, while urging Vincentians to return home at least once a year.

He also urged nationals, among other things, to “invest in our country; take advantage of the opportunities in the tourism sector; join a Vincy organization; get your Vincy passport, even if you are an American citizen; instill the values and disciplines that were instilled in us into our youths.”

McIntosh noted that one of the top Vincy Diaspora DJs, EZ Sounds, based in New York, was “flown in for the event”, along with the New York-based 2022 Vincy Mas Road March winner, Man Kemmy.

“Both entertainers kept the audience well entertained until the rest of the evening was marred with rain,” McIntosh said.

“

Despite the rain, those in attendance seemed to have had a great time,” he added, stating that “the sentiments from most are that they cannot wait for the 2024 Vincy Picnic.”

In addressing the 6^th Annual Vincy Family Day Picnic in Central Florida, Mark Lindsay, SVGCFO’s president and chief executive officer, said the group was “particularly delighted to have as our guest of honor today our US Council General Mr. Rondy McIntosh and his family.

“CG McIntosh, ‘Luta’, has been a friend of our organization for several years and has represented the SVGCFO as Goodwill Ambassador in SVG, as well as donating his time and talent to perform at our 2015 Annual Dinner and Dance,” said Lindsay about McIntosh, who is also a soca artiste.

“Now in our 10^th year of operation, the SVGCFO continues to fulfill its mission of ‘increasing public awareness of Caribbean culture through arts, music and education, and providing charity to the needy directly and in cooperation with fellow charitable organizations, such as the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, food banks and similar programs,’” he added.

Over the past 12 months, through its relationship with Marion House (SVG), Lindsay said SVGCFO shipped several large boxes of food and clothing supplies to SVG, with an estimated value of US$4,000. 00. Marion House offers general counselling sessions and “tangible support” for survivors of domestic violence.

Under the banner of the Judge Alban Niles Scholarship Fund, Lindsay said SVGCFO also donated US$1,850 in scholarship funds to two students in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and has supported fellow organizations in Central Florida to the tune of US$600.

In January, Lindsay said SVGCFO updated its bylaws “to reflect the changing environment and circumstances of the SVGCFO,” and is currently working on updating the SVGCFO.Org website, “which we expect to relaunch within the next six months.”

“None of these accomplishments would have been possible without the hard work and commitment of our members and Board of Directors, our sponsors, members of our community and the Caribbean Diaspora at large,” Lindsay said. “So, thank you for your generosity and support, and thank you all for being here today. May we all have a joyous and blessed day today.”

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - When Georgia needed it most, the running game answered the call.

The Bulldogs had just seen a 25-point halftime lead over Florida trimmed to eight points, thanks to a pair of second-half turnovers. A game that seemed secure now hung in the balance once more.

But behind Daijun Edwards and Kenny McIntosh, as well as a bruising offensive line, the Georgia ground game helped the Bulldogs salt away the 42-20 win over the Gators.

"That’s a freaking mentality shifter," quarterback Stetson Bennett said. "When they have the momentum and we can run the ball down their throat, then they don’t have momentum anymore. That’s how that works."

Georgia's run game had a solid first half. The Bulldogs rushed for 84 yards on 18 carries. Both McIntosh and Edwards found the end zone in the opening 30 minutes.

But things went a little sideways after halftime. Florida scored first after getting the ball out of the locker room. On the first play of Georgia's drive, McIntosh fumbled to set up a Gator field goal that made the score 28-13.

The next Bulldog drive ended in an interception. But before that, McIntosh ripped off runs of 13 and 15 yards to flip the field position.

"I thought Kenny McIntosh showed a little something tonight now, when he came out after that fumble," Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. "He had that eye of the tiger, and he wanted the ball. He was running the ball hard and physical and getting yards after contact."

Another Florida touchdown made the score 28-20 with 3:31 left in the third quarter. That's when the ground game began to take over.

Five of Georgia's six plays on the ensuing possession were runs. McIntosh started the drive with a gain of 11. Edwards had a 20-yard run and then punctuated the series with a 22-yard scoring jaunt. Smart called that series "probably the drive of the year so far."

"(Edwards) is a patient runner," Smart said. "He eats yards after contact. That run that he broke out of there, I think was really big for us that took it from eight to 15. That was a huge run. He was really patient. I don't know if those guys can see him behind there because he's so little."

Center Sedrick Van Pran said the mindset today felt similar to the win over Missouri earlier this year. When the offense needed to get things going, the Bulldogs put it on the shoulders of the big guys up front.

They did just that when they took over at the Florida 49-yard line up 15 points with 13:58 to play. After being set up with a first-and-goal, McIntosh took a handoff and met some Gator defenders. His offensive linemen pushed him into the end zone to put the Bulldogs up 42-20, icing the game.

Smart had a simple message for McIntosh after that touchdown.

"I told him he’s a bad MFer," Smart said. "I thought when he came back after the fumble, he came back with a vengeance. You watch the way he ran the ball, it was like, that dude’s running possessed. He wanted it. It reminded me of Nick (Chubb) and Sony (Michel) in the (Rose Bowl) game against Oklahoma where he was like, oh man, give me the ball back, coach, I messed it up. He ran pissed off. That’s what Kenny did.”

Overall, Georgia ran for 239 yards on 40 carries, an average of six yards per attempt. In the second half alone, the Bulldogs racked up 155 yards on the ground.

Edwards went for 106 yards and two touchdowns, the first Bulldog this year to crack the century mark. McIntosh chipped in 90 yards and two more scores.

There has been much made about Georgia as more of a passing offense this year. But when the chips were down against Florida, the Bulldogs went back to the ground. As Bennett said, the identity of the Georgia offense is just to get it done however necessary.

"First downs and touchdowns, that’s what it is," Bennett said. "I don’t think it really matters how we do it. We move the ball down the field, and when we get in the red zone, we want to score touchdowns. I think that’s the identity."

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