Day: January 28, 2026

In a bombshell on-the-ground investigation that’s igniting outrage across America, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz has blown the lid off what he calls one of the largest organized fraud schemes targeting U.S. taxpayers in recent history.

Walking the streets of Van Nuys, Dr. Oz pointed to a staggering reality: 42 hospice facilities crammed into just a four-block radius – many sporting Cyrillic signage, boarded-up windows, and zero signs of actual patients or medical staff.

“These aren’t legitimate end-of-life care providers,” Oz declared in viral video footage now exploding across social media. “Fraudsters set up fake hospice addresses, bill Medicare for services never provided – to patients who often don’t exist or aren’t even terminal.” The numbers are jaw-dropping:

• One documented operation alone stole $16 million from Medicare – yet the ringleader served only two years in prison.
• Overall, Oz estimates $3.5 billion in hospice and home health care fraud occurring just in Los Angeles County.
• Investigators believe the scheme involves hundreds of recruited “bad doctors” who falsify terminal diagnoses, trick or pay patients to hand over their Medicare numbers, and enroll roughly 100,000 people into bogus programs.

Dr. Oz didn’t mince words about who’s behind much of it: “Russian-Armenian mafia” networks – organized crime groups he says systematically corrupt physicians, fabricate records, and siphon billions from American taxpayers.

“Why are taxes so high? Why are costs insane? FRAUD on a massive scale,” one viral repost read, echoing the fury spreading online. Clips of Oz standing in front of suspicious storefronts have racked up millions of views, with many calling it “the tip of the iceberg” dwarfing even recent scandals in Minnesota.

The Trump administration’s CMS crackdown – backed by DOJ probes – promises aggressive action. “President Trump won’t tolerate taxpayer dollars being stolen,” Oz emphasized. “This is organized crime preying on our seniors and our system.”

But not everyone is cheering. California officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, have pushed back hard, calling the framing “unbelievable” and accusing the administration of taking credit for anti-fraud work already underway for years – while hinting the ethnic spotlight could veer into dangerous territory amid historic tensions.

Critics on forums like Reddit worry the “mafia” label unfairly paints entire Armenian communities, while supporters see it as long-overdue accountability for a broken system bleeding the country dry.

One thing is clear: this story is far from over. As federal agents dig deeper, the Van Nuys hospice scandal could trigger nationwide audits, arrests, and the biggest Medicare fraud takedown in years. Your tax dollars. Their billions. Who’s really paying the price?

@AzeriTimes

Van Nuys, Los Angeles – January 28, 2026

L.A. County has become an epicenter for health care fraud in America. Criminals have corrupted the system so much that fraud is now almost expected. President Trump has made it clear: we will not tolerate the patient harm or taxpayer funded theft any longer. More to come. pic.twitter.com/JOp8ltimq8

— DrOzCMS (@DrOzCMS) January 27, 2026

The post SHOCKING EXPOSÉ: Dr. Oz Uncovers $3.5 BILLION Hospice Fraud Empire in LA – Tied to “Russian-Armenian Mafia Crime Ring” appeared first on azeritimes.com.

Ecuador has confirmed a 900% hike in the tariff for transporting Colombian crude oil through its petroleum infrastructure, increasing the cost from $3 to $30 per barrel, a move that has intensified tensions between the two countries in both energy and trade sectors.

The measure was confirmed Monday by Ecuador’s Minister of Environment and Energy Ines Manzano, who said the new rate applies to Colombian crude that moves through the Transecuadorian Oil Pipeline System, known by its Spanish acronym SOTE, which is owned by Ecuador. She said the increase took effect Friday, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“The tariff rose from $3 to $30 in reciprocity for Colombia’s decision to suspend the sale of electricity,” Manzano said in an interview with local radio station Sucesos.

The dispute between the two countries began after President Daniel Noboa’s government announced it would impose a 30% tariff on Colombian products. Ecuador justified the move by arguing that Colombia has not done enough to combat drug trafficking along the shared border and framed it as a trade protection measure.

Bogota responded with retaliatory steps, including the suspension of electricity supplies to Ecuador, which relies on imports to cover part of its power demand.

The SOTE is one of Ecuador’s two main oil pipelines and is operated by state-owned Petroecuador. The system transports crude from southern Colombia to the Ecuadorian port of Esmeraldas, on the Pacific Coast, for export to international markets, according to Colombia’s La Republica newspaper.

“Ecuador is providing a service of high strategic value to Ecopetrol,” Manzano said.

“This is an area where illicit activities occur and where numerous attacks have been recorded, so transporting the crude through our territory has allowed it to reach international markets,” she added.

According to figures cited by Ecuadorian outlet Primicias, about 10,300 barrels per day of Colombian oil were transported through the SOTE in November, including from Ecopetrol and private companies.

Ecuador also operates the Heavy Crude Oil Pipeline, known as OCP, which transports oil for private companies. Because it operates under separate commercial contracts, its tariff was not modified.

Colombia relies on Ecuadorian infrastructure, which provides one of the fastest and safest routes to export oil from fields in the country’s south. Using Ecuador’s pipelines reduces transit times, overland transport costs and risks associated with longer domestic routes.

For more than a decade, Ecuador has been a key logistics partner for Colombia’s oil industry, providing direct access to international markets through the Pacific.

In response to Ecuador’s decision to raise the tariff on crude oil transportation, the Colombian government decided Tuesday to impose a 30% tariff on a range of products from Ecuador that were not included in the first round of measures, according to Caracol Radio.

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Rwanda has announced it is suing the United Kingdom to demand compensation for the canceled, controversial migrant agreement, under which Rwanda was to receive deported asylum seekers from the UK.

Rwanda announced on Tuesday that it had filed proceedings with the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

The migrant deal entered into force on April 25, 2024. In July 2024, shortly after taking office, the U.K.’s new Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that the deal was “dead and buried.”

“He did so without prior notice to Rwanda, contrary to the spirit of the partnership that had always characterized the agreement,” the Rwandan government said in a statement.

Under the deal, signed with former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Britain agreed to pay Rwanda to take in asylum seekers who had arrived in the U.K. illegally.

Only four people came to Rwanda voluntarily. Sunak’s successor, Starmer, rejected the controversial plan as soon as his Labour government came to power later that month.

In 2023, the U.K. Supreme Court found the deal between Rwanda and the U.K. to be “unlawful,” ruling that it violated both U.K. law and international law and ordering it to be scrapped.

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Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado stated on Wednesday that the country’s democratic forces are ready to participate in a “real transition” of power, but will reject any arrangement that keeps what she described as criminal structures linked to the current authorities in place.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, Machado said the opposition would support a transition process only if it restores democratic institutions and dismantles networks she accused interim authorities led by interim President Delcy Rodríguez of using to retain power, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“We are willing to facilitate a genuine transition,” Machado said. “But not a Russian-style transition where mafias remain in control. Venezuela does not need stability for criminals — it needs justice, truth and freedom.”

Machado, who last year was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela,” described Rodríguez as a central figure in what she called a system of “narcoterrorism and repression,” accusing her and other senior officials of responsibility for extrajudicial killings, mass political imprisonment and the forced migration of millions of Venezuelans.

She said no one in the democratic opposition trusts Rodríguez, but acknowledged that international efforts are focused on creating incentives that weaken the repressive apparatus.

Her comments came as Venezuela experiences a limited but notable release of political prisoners following U.S.-backed pressure on Caracas after the removal of former president Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.

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