Former NFL-Linked Star Sentenced to Over 16 Years for $200M Medicare Fraud Targeting Seniors and Disabled Veterans

Joel Rufus French once stood out as one of Ole Miss football’s top tight ends, earning unanimous All-American honors before spending time with NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers organizations. Now, the former college football star has been sentenced to more than 16 years in prison in a federal healthcare fraud case targeting seniors and disabled veterans. 

French was a tight end for the University of Mississippi Rebels from 1996 through 1998 and earned unanimous All-American honors in 1998, according to Ole Miss Sports. He went undrafted in the 1999 NFL draft, later joined the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent, and spent two seasons with the team. He suffered a knee injury and never played a regular-season game. 

French later signed with the Green Bay Packers in March 2002 but was released in July 2002, again without appearing in a regular-season game. Despite his time with both franchises, he never played in an NFL game. 

His son, Charleston, currently plays football for the University of North Carolina. 

Now, French, 47, has been sentenced to 196 months, or over 16 years in federal prison for his role in a Medicare fraud scheme that preys on disabled veterans and seniors. 

The Department of Justice (DOJ) stated on Friday, May 8, 2026, that the sentence follows French’s February conviction for his role in defrauding Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) out of close to $200 million by selling patient information and orders for orthotic braces by fake doctors that patients did not require or want. 

Along with his over 16-year-long prison term, French has also been ordered to pay $110,753,619 in restitution. He has also been ordered to forfeit approximately $17 million in funds seized from bank accounts and other assets. 

French was convicted in February after a six-day jury trial. The former college football star of Armory, Mississippi, was convicted of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to offer, pay, solicit, and receive kickbacks.

Trial documents showed that French worked with overseas telemarketing centers that targeted elderly Americans and pressured them to share personal and insurance information, and to receive orthotic braces they did not medically need. Prosecutors said some of the recorded calls were manipulated to make it appear like patients had approved the braces, when they had not. 

Authorities said French also paid fake telemedicine companies in exchange for signed prescriptions from doctors and nurse practitioners who, in many cases, had never examined or even spoken to the patients. Those prescriptions were then reportedly sold to marketers and medical equipment businesses that billed Medicare for the braces.

Court documents further alleged that French used eight medical supply companies that he owned to submit fraudulent claims to Medicare and CHAMPVA, a healthcare program for veterans’ families. Prosecutors said he hid his ties to the companies by using straw owners and falsified paperwork.

The DOJ also accused French of laundering about $225,000 in cash from a Mississippi bank. More than $10,000 of that money was allegedly transported in a bag to Orlando to pay people who provided beneficiaries’ personal and insurance details.

Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS‑OIG) said that French’s “lengthy sentence underscores the seriousness of his crimes and sends a clear message: HHS‑OIG and our law enforcement partners remain steadfast in safeguarding taxpayer‑funded programs and ensuring those who seek to defraud them will be found, stopped, and held accountable.”