MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG) — A Mississippi man pleaded guilty Thursday to his role in a scheme to defraud healthcare benefit programs by prescribing unnecessary foot bath medications and ordering unnecessary testing of toenails for kickbacks and bribes, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

Court documents stated Marion Lund, who owned and operated a podiatry clinic and pharmacy, routinely wrote prescriptions for and dispensed foot bath medications regardless of medical necessity to maximize reimbursements from Medicare, TRICARE, and other health care benefit programs.

The 54-year-old podiatrist from Taylor, Mississippi also tested his patients’ toenail clippings and wound cultures even though it wasn’t medically necessary.

The Department of Justice said he submitted over $1.4 million in claims to Medicare and TRICARE from April 2020 to March 2022. It resulted in $700,000 in reimbursements. Lund was also reportedly paid cash kickbacks by a purported marketer for his prescriptions and orders.

Lund pled guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. His sentencing is scheduled for May 15, 2023. He faces a maximum of ten years in prison.

According to the DOJ, Lund is one of four medical professionals who pled guilty to their role in the scheme.