In case you were wondering where your tax dollars were going, they were used to purchase “Seven properties, a Mercedes G-Wagon, sneakers worn by Kobe Bryant, and a Mickey Mantle rookie card worth $1.5 million.” All of that was purchased by a single fraudster while you struggled to make ends meet.

Sixty-six-year-old Paul Randall pleaded guilty in April for “submitting nearly $270 million in fraudulent claims over 11 months to California’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal) for expensive prescription drugs that were medically unnecessary and, in many instances, not provided to the purported recipients,” according to the DOJ.

According to Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, Randall was “living like a king,” while he used the fruits of your labor to purchase these luxury items.

Per CBS:

"It should offend every American taxpayer that these people are taking advantage of the system," Essayli said.

Seizing physical assets has been a first step in those efforts, Essayli said as he climbed the driveway of an eight-bedroom, 10-bathroom compound on an isolated Orange County hilltop – the former home to convicted serial fraudster Paul Randall.

Essayli said Randall was out on bond awaiting sentencing on another federal fraud charge, one of six prior fraud convictions, when he started this latest scheme.

The fact that he had six prior fraud convictions and was still able to outsmart the system for over $200 billion tells you all you need to know. For far too long, officials have turned a blind eye to this blatant fraud, and it is about time people start being held accountable.

"Obviously there's a breakdown in the criminal justice system if this guy was able to have six convictions and never did any real prison time," Essayli said.

What is even more infuriating is that this is just one man charged in one scheme. We can be certain there are many, many more exactly like him. Unfortunately, though, in what appears to be a slap in the face to the American people, lawmakers in California are doing everything possible to prevent these people from being caught.

Per Fox News:

Independent journalist Nick Shirley accused California lawmakers of trying to shield taxpayer-funded organizations from scrutiny after the state Assembly advanced AB 2624, dubbed the "Stop Nick Shirley Act," a bill the author says is intended to protect immigration service providers from harassment and threats.

The officials and staff members who turned a blind eye to this blatant fraud must be held accountable if we are ever to have bureaucratic change. The fact that lawmakers could not care less about the fraudulent use of taxpayer funds proves exactly who they are fighting for -- and it certainly is not you -- the American people. But what else is new?

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