Attorney General Griffin Announces Seven Arrests Made by Medicaid Fraud Control Unit

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin issued the following statement announcing seven recent arrests made by his office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU):

“These cases—five felony charges and two misdemeanors—were investigated by special agents within MFCU and include charges for Medicaid fraud, abuse of a vulnerable person, and failure to report the abuse of an adult. Arkansas’s MFCU continues their exemplary work ensuring bad actors attempting to defraud Medicaid or abuse our vulnerable populations are held accountable.

“I am grateful to the investigators and attorneys within MFCU for their excellent work and ongoing dedication to justice.”

Recent Arrests

On September 11, Sharon Whitaker, 59, of Conway was arrested and charged with Medicaid fraud, a Class B felony. Whitaker submitted claims totaling $6,850.56 for personal care services for clients within the apartment complex she managed during her scheduled hours as the property manager. This case was investigated by Special Agent Laura Glover and will be prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General David Jones in cooperation with Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Will Jones.

On September 11, John Weis, 21, of Booneville was arrested and charged with abuse of a vulnerable person, a Class D felony. While working as a certified nursing assistant at the Booneville Human Development Center, Weis purposely caused injury to a resident. This case was investigated by Special Agent Laura Glover and will be prosecuted in cooperation with Fifteenth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Tom Tatum II.

On September 17, Shane Phillips, 38, of Little Rock was arrested and charged with Medicaid fraud, a Class A felony. Phillips submitted claims totaling $88,104.96 for personal care and attendant care services during his client’s inpatient hospital stay and while Phillips was on the clock for other employers. This case was investigated by Special Agent Laura Glover and will be prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Corinne Kwapis in cooperation with Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Will Jones. This case was referred to MFCU by the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General.

On September 17, Gregory Davell Clayborn, 33, of Arkadelphia was arrested on a charge of abuse of an adult, a Class D felony; Shamirrah Desha Childs, 25, of Arkadelphia was arrested on a charge of failure to report the abuse of an adult, a Class B misdemeanor; and Debbie Kay Thomas, 61, of Arkadelphia was arrested on a charge of failure to report the abuse of an adult, a Class B misdemeanor. While working at the Arkadelphia Human Development Center (AHDC), Clayborn purposefully and unnecessarily slapped a resident, causing him substantial physical pain and mental anguish. Childs and Thomas, who worked as caregivers at AHDC, failed to report Clayborn’s abuse of a resident. The cases against all three were investigated by Special Agent Jacob Good and will be prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General David Jones and Corinne Kwapis in cooperation with Ninth-East Judicial District Prosecutor Dan Turner.

On September 18, Michael Bodine, 33, of Beebe was arrested on a charge of Medicaid fraud, a Class C felony. While working at a local business, Bodine was simultaneously billing Medicaid for personal care services for two different Medicaid beneficiaries. Bodine caused over 90 fraudulent claims to be billed for $4,725.76. The case was investigated by Special Agent Richard Morales and will be prosecuted by Senior Assistant Attorney General Gabby Davis-Jones in cooperation with Sixth Judicial District Prosecutor Will Jones.

The Arkansas MFCU receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant totaling $4,781,516 for the Federal fiscal year 2026, of which $3,586,140 is federally funded. The remaining 25%, totaling $1,195,376 for the State fiscal year 2026, is funded by Arkansas General Revenue.

To download a PDF version of this release, click here.

About Attorney General Tim Griffin

Tim Griffin was sworn in as the 57th Attorney General of Arkansas on January 10, 2023, having previously served as the state’s 20th Lieutenant Governor from 2015-2023. From 2011-2015, Griffin served as the 24th representative of Arkansas’s Second Congressional District, where he served on the House Committee on Ways and Means, House Armed Services Committee, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, House Committee on Ethics and House Committee on the Judiciary while also serving as a Deputy Whip for the Majority.

Griffin is currently an officer in the Arkansas Army National Guard and holds the rank of colonel. Griffin served as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps for more than 28 years. In 2005, Griffin was mobilized to active duty as an Army prosecutor at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and served with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Mosul, Iraq.

His previous assignments include serving as the Commander of the 2d Legal Operations Detachment in New Orleans, Louisiana; the Commander of the 134th Legal Operations Detachment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; and as a Senior Legislative Advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness at the Pentagon. Griffin earned a master’s degree in strategic studies as a Distinguished Honor Graduate from the U.S. Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania.

Griffin also served as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, and Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Political Affairs for President George W. Bush; Special Assistant to Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff, Criminal Division, U.S. Department of Justice; Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Arkansas; Senior Investigative Counsel, Government Reform and Oversight Committee, U.S. House of Representatives; and Associate Independent Counsel, Office of Independent Counsel David M. Barrett, In re: HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros.

Griffin is a graduate of Magnolia High School, Hendrix College in Conway, and Tulane Law School in New Orleans. He attended graduate school at Oxford University. He is admitted to practice law in Arkansas (active) and Louisiana (inactive). Griffin lives in Little Rock with his wife, Elizabeth, a Camden native, and their three children.

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