A King County jury convicted a Kent man on 11 felony counts for operating a staffing agency that allegedly used stolen identities of licensed nurses to place unqualified imposters in nursing homes and long-term care facilities across Washington.
Jurors found David Mungai Njenga guilty on all counts on May 28 following a trial prosecuted by the Washington Attorney General’s Office Medicaid Fraud & Abuse Division.
The convictions include one count of leading organized crime, five counts of first-degree identity theft, one count of second-degree identity theft, three counts of first-degree theft, and one count of second-degree theft, according to the attorney general’s Office.
Prosecutors said Njenga operated Heritage Medical Staffing, Inc., a Kent-based company that later became Pro Med Alliance Medical Staffing, Inc. Authorities alleged he stole the identities and professional credentials of licensed nurses and used them to place unlicensed and unqualified workers in healthcare facilities throughout the state.
The scheme operated between May 2017 and October 2019, according to prosecutors.
Facilities in Yakima, Bothell, Redmond, Shoreline, Vashon Island, North Bend, and other communities hired what they believed were licensed nurses. Prosecutors said Njenga collected payments from the facilities while paying the imposters significantly less than qualified nurses would have earned.
According to trial evidence, some of the unqualified workers demonstrated a lack of basic medical knowledge, including how to properly take a patient’s blood pressure. Prosecutors also alleged that some administered incorrect medications, putting vulnerable residents at risk.
“This verdict is the result of our team’s commitment to cracking down on Medicaid fraud and ensuring the safety of our health system,” Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said. “We are gratified to get justice for the many people harmed and put at risk by these crimes.”
Brown’s office said the case began after the Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office referred a related investigation in 2019. Prosecutors had charged a woman who allegedly used fraudulent identification documents to pose as a licensed registered nurse after previously working for Njenga.
Investigators determined that Njenga obtained identifying information belonging to five licensed nurses and created fraudulent identification documents using a single person’s fingerprints, according to prosecutors.
The conviction marks the first Medicaid fraud trial in Washington state history to include a charge of leading organized crime, the attorney general’s Office said.
Njenga is scheduled to be sentenced June 16 in King County Superior Court. He faces a potential prison sentence ranging from approximately 12 years to 16½ years, along with financial penalties of up to $50,000.
A co-defendant, Everlyn Njuki, was not part of the trial. Court records show a bench warrant has been issued after she allegedly left the country.
Separately, the state’s Medicaid Fraud & Abuse Division obtained default judgments totaling $81,000 against Heritage Medical Staffing and Pro Med Alliance Medical Staffing.
The Washington Medicaid Fraud & Abuse Division investigates and prosecutes healthcare fraud, Medicaid-related abuse, and cases involving abuse or neglect in long-term care settings. Since October 2018, the division has filed 127 criminal cases, secured 104 convictions, and recovered approximately $81 million for the Medicaid program, according to the attorney general’s Office.
