American Airlines employees were the main targets of an insurance fraud scam that stretched five years and bilked nearly $17 million. The Northern District of Texas last month indicted 66-year-old Terry Anderson and his 36-year-old son Rocky Anderson with more than a dozen federal counts, including conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

The two men operated Anderson Optical & Hearing as state-licensed hearing instrument dispensers. They allegedly defrauded Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas between January 2011 and November 2016 under the guise of American Airlines workers.

The men are accused of submitting unnecessary claims for hearing aids and the indictment says the men targeted American Airlines employees because, before 2014, the airline’s insurance plans had no maximum limit on the cost of hearing aids. Subscribers were able to obtain the devices once per plan year or every 36 months.

“In 2013, approximately 84.6 percent of Anderson Optical & Hearing’s total income came from BCBS and 99.7 percent of the BCBS payments were based on claims submitted for American Airlines employees and their dependents,” the U.S. attorney’s office for the Northern District stated.

The Andersons drew in their victims by allegedly promising BCBS subscribers free high-end sunglasses and prescription eyeglasses in exchange for taking a hearing aid test. They would then tell the patients they had some level of hearing loss.

BCBS says the Andersons submitted claims exceeding $27 million on behalf of American Airlines workers, with the insurance company paying out nearly $17 million to Anderson Optical & Hearing.

The defendants face significant fines and prison time if found guilty.