BALTIMORE — A federal grand jury in Maryland indicted Patrick Britton-Harr, 41, of Charleston, South Carolina, and formerly of Annapolis, Maryland, on May 28, 2025, for orchestrating two fraud schemes targeting Medicare and customers of his private jet company, AeroVanti, Inc. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland unsealed two indictments charging Britton-Harr with defrauding Medicare of over $5 million through a laboratory test scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic and misappropriating approximately $15 million from AeroVanti’s “Top Gun” members.
The first indictment alleges that Britton-Harr, through his company Provista Health, offered COVID-19 screening tests to nursing home patients nationwide. He then fraudulently billed Medicare for respiratory pathogen panel (RPP) tests that were medically unnecessary, not ordered by physicians, and often not performed, including for deceased patients. Provista Health submitted over $15 million in fraudulent claims, with Medicare paying out more than $5 million. Britton-Harr faces five counts of health care fraud and one count of money laundering in this federal case.
The second indictment charges Britton-Harr with defrauding nearly 100 Top Gun members of AeroVanti, a private air club he owned. Members paid $150,000 upfront for block flight hours, expecting their funds to purchase specific aircraft in which they would hold a securitized interest. Instead, Britton-Harr allegedly diverted approximately $15 million for personal expenses, including yachts, jewelry, living costs, and renting a property near Tampa, Florida. He concealed the fraud by securing a $1.5 million loan for an aircraft he claimed was already purchased, withholding key information from the lender. This scheme led to six counts of wire fraud.
“It is unconscionable for someone to defraud the government and others for personal gain, especially as we faced a global health crisis,” said U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes. “Britton-Harr showed a total disregard for those who depend on our Medicare system for health care services and for the individuals he scammed through his private-jet company.”
“The defendant allegedly perpetrated two fraud schemes, first exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to defraud Medicare out of millions of dollars and then stealing millions more from customers of his aviation company, all for his personal benefit,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. Special Agent in Charge William J. DelBagno of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office added, “Patrick Britton-Harr’s repeated crimes reveal a man with no moral compass motivated by pure greed.”
If convicted in federal court, Britton-Harr faces up to 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and 10 years for each health care fraud and money laundering count. A federal district court judge will determine sentencing based on U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutory factors. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG) conducted the investigation, with prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ari D. Evans and Matthew P. Phelps, alongside Trial Attorneys David Peters and Chris Wenger of the Justice Department’s Fraud Section.
Britton-Harr’s legal challenges extend beyond these indictments. In July 2024, a Maryland federal court issued a $26.3 million default judgment against him and his laboratory companies for False Claims Act violations related to Medicare fraud. AeroVanti, founded in 2021, has faced lawsuits from customers, employees, and vendors, including a $3.4 million judgment won by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for unpaid sponsorship fees. Despite these issues, Britton-Harr attempted to relaunch AeroVanti in October 2024, offering discounted flights to former members.
The federal indictments underscore efforts to protect taxpayer-funded programs and consumers from fraud, particularly during a national crisis. An indictment is an allegation, and Britton-Harr is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The case reflects the Justice Department’s commitment to pursuing complex fraud schemes across multiple sectors.
