A doctor admitted Wednesday that he participated in a health care fraud scheme that targeted Amtrak, federal prosecutors said.

Muhammad Mirza, 50, of Cedar Grove, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud before a federal court judge, according to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office.

From April 2017 through June 2022, Mirza and others, who were not identified Wednesday, were part of a scheme to bill the Amtrak health care plan for fraudulent claims for services that either were never provided or were medically unnecessary, the office said.

They would recruit Amtrak employees by paying them to allow the conspirators to use their patient and insurance information to submit fake claims, which they submitted. It caused Amtrak losses of more than $1.3 million, investigators said.

Amtrak officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Mirza faces a maximum of 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on Sept. 13, federal prosecutors said.

Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.

©2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit nj.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.