What type of billing scheme did Joe commit by creating a fictitious company?

Joe's actions of creating a fictitious company fall under a shell company scheme. This type of scheme involves the establishment of a company that has no real operations or legitimate purpose but is instead set up to facilitate fraudulent activities. In this scenario, Joe uses the fictitious company to submit false invoices for goods or services that were never provided, allowing him to divert funds illegally.

A shell company scheme is particularly noteworthy because it often relies on the manipulation of financial records and invoices to give the appearance of legitimate transactions. The fake company allows the perpetrator to create the illusion of business, which can subsequently be used to siphon money from the victimized organization. This type of scheme can be sophisticated, as it can involve collusion with other parties or even the establishment of multiple such entities.

Other types of schemes listed, such as cash diversion, pass-through, and general billing fraud, do not specifically emphasize the creation of a fictitious company as central to their operation. Cash diversion schemes typically involve the misappropriation of cash that a legitimate company receives, while pass-through schemes involve the use of an intermediary to bill for services or goods that are ultimately not provided, but they don’t always require the establishment of a shell company. In contrast, billing fraud schemes