Court: fraudsters to be sent back to jail if money not repaid

Transcription

1 Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service Hosted by North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group Issue 51: March 2017 News and information from your local fraud team Court: fraudsters to be sent back to jail if money not repaid A criminal group who were jailed for defrauding the NHS have been ordered by a court to hand over their assets or face more time behind bars, after NHS Protect mounted an investigation to recover the money. After the original fraud investigation by NHS Protect, which led to the longest ever trial at Basildon Crown Court, they were found guilty of conspiracy to defraud Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The four worked at Basildon Hospital s Cardio Thoracic Centre as Perfusionists specialist operating theatre technicians. They worked the machinery to keep patients hearts and lungs functioning while they underwent major surgery such as heart bypasses. The four Perfusionists all held good jobs doing life and death work. However, they abused their highly trusted and respected Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust positions: the four were also the directors of a private company, London Perfusion Science Ltd (LPS), a vehicle they used to work privately and profitably at numerous other NHS hospitals at times they were already being paid to work at Basildon Hospital. They only worked 55% of their contracted hours at Basildon and the court determined that they had failed to work 14,000 hours they had been paid for. The trial was notorious for the colourful language uncovered by investigators in s between the fraudsters, revelling in their scheme, which they wrongly assumed the NHS would never uncover. At one point they were like euphoric gamblers after a big win, with Mulholland deriding Basildon Hospital, his official place of work, as Bas Vegas....continued on page 3

2 Local news Page 2 Contents Basildon fraud conspirators ordered to repay 650,000. Cover Local news. Page 2 Basildon fraud conspirators ordered to repay 650,000 (cont.) Page 3 Cyber crime event. Page 4 Telephone and scams. Working while sick fraud. Jail for 300,000 fraud against the NHS. Jail for 300,000 fraud against the NHS (cont.) Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Contact. Page 8 The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service has recently updated the information on the team s website. The team are pleased to announce that Karen Travers, (LCFS), will be re-joining the service on the 1st March Karen, who was part of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight team from , is returning after a three year spell working as a LCFS in Dorset. Samantha Willoughby, Head of Fraud and Security Management Karen Travers said: We are very pleased to have secured Karen s services. Karen has worked as an LCFS for many years, and her previous experience working with our partner organisations in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight will ensure that the transition from the previous LCFS will be as smooth as possible. Karen said: I am both excited and delighted to be returning to a team that I know from personal experience to be one of the very best in the country. Karen will be the nominated LCFS for the Isle of Wight CCG, Portsmouth CCG, Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust and Southampton City CCG. The pages provide information about common types of fraud, dealing with malicious s and provide the contact details for the whole team. A section on the Bribery Act provides an explanation of the legislation and outlines the impact and penalties for corrupt behaviour within the NHS. Put it in your favourites and it is only a click away! Prompt action by a GP practice in Hampshire recently prevented an attempted CEO fraud. An was received, purporting to be from a practice partner, requesting the transfer of over 17,000. Thankfully the recipient had previously seen the warnings regarding this type of fraud in Fraud Matters and no money was transferred. Attempts of this type are becoming increasingly common, with a number of local practices recently targeted, and one falling victim to the fraud. Staff should always independently verify any requesting an unusual financial transfer. 2

3 News Page 3...continued from page 1 They began working at Basildon Hospital in Summer 2007 at the new Cardio Thoracic Centre, which treated its first patients in July At the time, three lived in fashionable Limehouse, East London. Mulholland, an expert in his field who has published papers in international journals, assembled the whole Perfusionist team to work at Basildon Hospital. From the outset he pushed for a larger perfusion team than was required for the work of the unit and immediately began to use the staff to undertake private work at other hospitals. None of the four notified Basildon NHS Trust of the conflict of interest that clearly arose from their directorships of LPS. Junior members of staff were instructed by Mulholland to work at other hospital sites but were never paid a penny by LPS. Instead, Mulholland signed off for them to be paid up to 30 hours a month extra, from the NHS s budget, as: "emergency call out work". Ringleader John Mulholland was sentenced in 2014 to 3 years imprisonment. His coconspirators; Ann Clements, Tom Cumberland and Martin Oliver were each sentenced to 2 years imprisonment. In his final ruling under POCA (Proceeds of Crime Act), Judge Owen-Jones ordered that the NHS must be compensated a total of 519, In addition 59,000 must be paid to the Treasury. The figures represent a determination that the benefit to the group from their crimes was 577, In addition, John Mulholland was ordered to pay 75,000 in costs to the Crown Prosecution Service. The grand total they must pay back is 650,000. Unless 3 they pay up within 6 months, Mulholland will face a default jail sentence of another 21 months in prison. The default sentence for the other three will be 18 months each. Sue Frith, Managing Director of NHS Protect, said today: "John Mulholland and his associates have tried their utmost to avoid returning any of what they stole to the NHS. Our investigators did not rest on their laurels after putting them behind bars, but worked tirelessly to get back as much public money as they could. The message is clear: defrauding the NHS results not only in criminal records. The career and financial consequences can be very severe. All suspicions of fraud reported to NHS Protect will be followed up, and investigated wherever appropriate. We press for the prosecution of offenders and seek the strongest possible sanctions".

4 Cyber crime Page 4 In February, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service hosted a cyber crime awareness event. In 2016 the service had strengthened its working links with Hampshire Constabulary s Economic Crime Unit and in a joint exercise targeting key personnel within partner NHS organisations, the event offered help and advice on the various types of cyber crime that pose a risk to the NHS. A presentation from Detective Inspector Lloyd Tobin from the Economic Crime Unit provided a detailed breakdown of the risks, explaining how the different frauds work and the way in which weak systems can be targeted. Information was provided on a wide range of potential cyber risks including: CEO fraud Mandate fraud Invoicing fraud Data hacking Data ransoming Reputational damage Social media control Attending the event were Directors, Finance Managers, Risk Managers, Information Governance Managers, Information Technology Managers and other key NHS personnel. Following the event, Alec Gaines, Local Counter Fraud Specialist, declared the event a great success, saying: This was a rare opportunity for the Police to speak directly to NHS Managers from across the area, bringing them right up to date D.I. Lloyd Tobin and Local Counter Fraud Specialist Alec Gaines with the various challenges posed by the rise in cyber crime and the risks posed by such crime to their organisations. We would like to thank all those that participated, the event was very well attended and feedback was extremely positive. In 2016, 40% of companies expected a data breach caused by malicious insiders. From global cybercrime costs are predicted to increase significantly, reaching US $2.1 Trillion. Detective Inspector Lloyd Tobin presents to NHS Managers In the year ending March 2016, 3.8 million fraud cases and 2 million cases of computer and data misuse were reported in the UK. 4

5 News Page 5 The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service is seeing a continued increase in the number of hoax and malicious telephone calls and s being reported. In particular there have been a series of false s that appear to have been sent from senior figures in an organisation requesting financial transfers. There have also been instances where computers have been infected with viruses contained within attachments in malicious s. It is important to remain vigilant and to take the following steps to protect yourselves and the NHS:? Always be suspicious of unknown or unsolicited callers requesting personal or private information. Check them out by calling them back on an independently verified telephone number to ensure that they are legitimate. Ignore s from people you don t know requesting that you reply with sensitive information or follow links in the . If in doubt contact the alleged sender on an independently verified telephone number to check the validity of the . Beware of alarmist s that contain attachments. They might threaten a fine, suspension of your account or an imminent debit from your bank account. Do not open any attachment to investigate the matter, it will probably contain malicious software. Always be very suspicious of an from someone you do not know. Never process a financial transaction on the basis of an from a senior person in your organisation, without first taking action to independently verity that it is legitimate. Requests should always be in line with your organisation s Standing Financial Instructions. Managers should ensure their staff are aware of the risks. Further help and advice may also be available from your organisation s Information Governance Manager. Employees working for another employer during NHS sickness absence is still one of the most common types of internal fraud offence investigated within the NHS. Here are some simple steps that managers can take to reduce the risk of this type of offence: Ensure your staff understand your organisation s sickness absence policy, in particular that they should normally not work for another employer during periods of NHS sickness. When an employee reports as unfit to work, ask them if they hold any other employment and whether they plan to undertake that. Remind them of the requirements of your organisation s sickness absence policy. Conduct back-to-work interviews promptly and ensure all appropriate paperwork is completed and returned to HR when required. Ask whether any work was undertaken for another employer during the sickness period and record the response on the back-to-work paperwork. Report any suspicions to your. 5 Page 5

6 National Cases An NHS manager, his partner and three contractors, who all helped defraud his employer of hundreds of thousands of pounds, have been sentenced following a fraud investigation led by NHS Protect. The thefts from Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust were too extensive and complex to ever be precisely added up, but the total is estimated at around 300,000. The exact figure will be determined at a future confiscation hearing to get the money back. Ringleader Alan Hodge (53), of Sutton, Surrey, was the Trust s Renal Technical Department Manager, in charge of maintaining dialysis equipment. Also involved were his partner, Lisa Green (49) and three company owners to whom he awarded NHS contracts: Pierre Allen (55) of Burgh Heath, Tadworth, Proprietor of Mains Contractors, Stephen Thompson (47) of Furnace Green, West Sussex, Proprietor of S J Thompson Plumbing and Phillip Jones (50) of Godstone, Surrey, Proprietor of TWS (Southern) Limited. Alan Hodge was sentenced to 4 years imprisonment, Pierre Allen to 3 years imprisonment and Thompson to 2 years imprisonment. Jones received a 12 month sentence, suspended for 2 years, and 250 hours unpaid work. Green received a 6 month sentence, suspended for 12 months, and 100 hours unpaid work. Page 6 At an earlier hearing in November - after a seven week trial - Hodge, Allen and Thompson were found guilty of fraud by abuse of position (contrary to the Fraud Act 2006) while Green was found guilty of a money laundering offence (contrary to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002). Jones was the only one to plead guilty, to Fraud by Abuse of Position, in May. Their crimes all related to Hodge s award of work to the three contractors and resulting payments. Hodge was responsible for maintaining the dialysis equipment at three sites: St Helier Hospital (in Carshalton), Manorgate Satellite Dialysis Unit (in Kingston Upon Thames) and Mayday Satellite Dialysis Unit (at Croydon University Hospital, Thornton Heath). He also visited patients homes to decide what modifications would be needed for them to receive home dialysis, and to procure the works required. Attention focused on Hodge in October 2013 after the Trust suspended him for an unrelated disciplinary matter (for which he was later dismissed, in January 2014). The manager of the renal department soon noticed that when Hodge was away, far fewer invoices were being presented for her to authorise in his work area. Expenditure from the renal technician s non pay budget dropped to less than half. Further investigation established that he had been exploiting his position by engaging people he knew as contractors, ostensibly to carry out necessary work for the Trust. However, invoices were raised in their name for work which was either not done at all, done far more frequently than was necessary, and/or was greatly overpriced....continued on page 7

7 National Cases Page 7...continued from page 6 In January 2014, as the scale of the problem emerged, the Local Counter Fraud Specialist referred the investigation to NHS Protect, whose investigators uncovered: 266 invoices for work that had either not been done, was not necessary, or came at excessive cost, including: Invoices for modification of patients homes for dialysis treatment when they never received their treatment at home Invoices for electrical and plumbing installation work at a prison (HMP High Down) that was actually undertaken by prison staff Invoices for installation of dialysis equipment at HMP High Down that was actually undertaken by Hodge and another member of Trust staff as part of their paid NHS duties. Invoices for installation of flooring at a dialysis patient s home that was actually fitted by the patient s own relative. Between 2009 and 2013 Mains Contractors was paid a total of 388, by the Trust; between 2007 and 2013 S J Thompson Plumbing was paid a total of 118, and between 2011 and 2013 TWS (Southern) Ltd was paid a total of 43, Invoices submitted by these companies contained only a minimal description of the work done, perhaps in order to make it more difficult for the Trust to audit the work. But they were thwarted by the thoroughness of NHS Protect investigators, who scrutinised text and chat messages between Hodge, Allen, Thompson and Jones. These indicated they were colluding to inflate the invoices their companies submitted to the Trust, in order to share out the invoiced amounts between themselves. Allen made regular payments by cheque, bank transfer and cash totalling over 94,000 to Hodge following payments from the Trust into the company bank account, and made payments by cheque to Hodge s partner, Lisa Green in total over 9,000. The primary business of Mains Contractors was building and renovating three residential properties owned by Hodge and Allen at Greenhill, Sutton just a few hundred metres from St Helier Hospital. These were later sold at a substantial profit, shared between the two. On a regular basis, Thompson would receive a text or chat message from Hodge advising him that the payments had been made from the Trust into his account. Hodge would then ask Thompson to withdraw a large quantity of cash and arrange to meet to collect his share. TWS (Southern) Ltd made regular payments by cheque and bank transfer totalling over 11,000 to the respective accounts of Green and Hodge following notification from Hodge that invoices were being paid by the Trust. Payments received by his partner, Green, were transferred into Hodge s account. The fraudsters lived in some style at the expense of the NHS: Hodge indulged in frequent holidays and maintained a large static caravan in Hastings. He and Pierre Allen of Mains Contractor spent over 15,000 on Chelsea Football Club tickets, while Allen s 50th birthday party at the 200 acre Gatton Manor Golf club in Surrey cost over 6,000. Sue Frith, Managing Director of NHS Protect, said: Painstaking, diligent work by NHS Protect fraud investigators has once again put a stop to precious NHS money being diverted into private pockets. It is very sad when trusted staff with valuable technical skills, sorely needed by the NHS and its patients, turn to crime. The public rightly demands that NHS workers are people of integrity as well as technical ability. NHS Protect welcomes any tipoffs where fraud is suspected and wherever appropriate, it will be investigated and prosecuted. We support the strongest sanctions to deter others from defrauding the NHS. 7

8 Making contact Page 8 Samantha Willoughby Hampshire and Isle of Wight Counter Fraud Team Head of Fraud & Security Management, Local Security Management Specialists For reports of NHS crime that isn't fraud (Theft, assault, criminal damage, harassment etc.) samantha.willoughby@nhs.net Solent NHS Trust Hampshire CCGs Simon Zammit simon.zammit@nhs.net Isle of Wight CCG Connie Wendes connie.wendes@iow.nhs.uk Alec Gaines alec.gaines@nhs.net Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust North East Hampshire & Farnham CCG North Hampshire CCG Solent NHS Trust Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Gerald Edwards gerald.edwards@solent.nhs.uk Gerry Hauman (B stoke) gerry.hauman@hhft.nhs.uk Lee Kinrade (Winchester) Lee.Kinrade@hhft.nhs.uk Jennison Baskerville Karen Travers jennison.baskerville@nhs.net Fareham and Gosport CCG South Eastern Hampshire CCG University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust West Hampshire CCG karen.travers@nhs.net Isle of Wight CCG Portsmouth CCG Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust Southampton City CCG Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust (QA) University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust Simon Zammit simon.zammit@nhs.net Sandra Hodgkyns Ext 6222 Sandra.hodgkyns@uhs.nhs.uk Useful contacts The NHS Fraud & Corruption Reporting Line The NHS fraud reporting website NHS Protect homepage Protect.aspx For checking suspicious s: Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service, Regents Park Surgery, Park Street, Southampton, SO16 4RJ Further information on our web-pages Police advice and information on various scams and hoaxes Protect against identity theft docs/little_book_scam.pdf microsites/idtheft The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fraud and Security Management Service take no responsibility for the accuracy of content of any external website 8