Keith Gray, former NFL player, convicted in $328M Medicare fraud scheme in Texas; what do we know so far

Keith Gray, a former NFL player who played for the Carolina Panthers in 2009, was convicted for his role in a $328 million Medicare fraud scheme, according to authorities.

The US Department of Justice, in a news release issued on Friday (February 20, 2026), said that a federal jury in Dallas convicted the 39-year-old former NFL player and University of Connecticut student athlete for orchestrating “a scheme to bill Medicare for medically unnecessary genetic tests designed to evaluate the risk of various cardiovascular diseases and conditions.”

Gray, of McKinney, Texas, who owns and operates two clinical laboratories, offered and “paid kickbacks to marketers in exchange for their referral of Medicare beneficiaries’ DNA samples, personally identifiable information (including Medicare numbers), and signed test orders from medical providers authorizing the medically unnecessary genetic tests,” prosecutors said, citing the evidence at trial.


The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU), and the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG), the news release stated.

Gray billed Medicare about $328 million and laundered money.

Authorities claimed that through his companies, Axis Professional Labs LLC and Kingdom Health Laboratory LLC, Gray, the former offensive lineman, billed Medicare about $328 million, of which it paid approximately $54 million.

In the release, prosecutors from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section said that Gray “laundered some of the proceeds by purchasing expensive luxury vehicles, including a Dodge Ram truck worth more than $142,000 and a Mercedes Benz SUV worth more than $145,000.”

Jury finds Keith Gray guilty

A jury found the former NFL player guilty of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks, five counts of violating the Anti-Kickback Statute, and three counts of money laundering.

“He is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date. Gray faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors,” the DOJ news release said.

Who is Keith Gray?

Born in Allen, Texas, Gray attended high school in Worcester, Mass. Gray started all 13 games at center for the UConn Huskies in 2007, according to PEOPLE.

His NFL career began when he briefly joined the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent, according to TMZ. The player then signed on to the Indianapolis Colts practice squad.