A woman with no formal medical qualifications has been convicted of defrauding the NHS after working as a healthcare support worker using fake ID, a court has heard.
Oluwabunmu Adeleiyi, 30, a Nigerian national living in Canton, Cardiff, entered NHS facilities on a student visa and worked shifts at Neath Port Talbot Hospital and the Caswell Clinic, a medium secure mental health unit in Bridgend.
According to the BBC, Cardiff Crown Court heard that Adeleiyi and two accomplices used the same false identities to submit claims through multiple employment agencies, fraudulently billing the NHS approximately £16,000 per month.
The 30-year-old admitted four counts of fraud by false representation. She was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment for each offence, to run concurrently, suspended for two years.
Two of the offences related to work carried out at Neath Port Talbot Hospital, while the remaining two concerned shifts undertaken at the Caswell Clinic.
The court was told the fraud was uncovered when Ms. Adeleiyi attempted to check out after completing a night shift at the Caswell Clinic. A receptionist noticed that a passport photograph had been inserted into an ID card, which was stored inside a plastic wallet.
When challenged, the Nigerian woman refused to surrender her shift documentation. The matter was escalated to senior managers at Swansea Bay University Health Board (SBUHB), who declared a critical incident.
Patients and staff placed at risk
An internal investigation found staff had observed “bizarre” behaviour during Adeleiyi’s shifts, including locking herself inside ward rooms and securing corridor doors that must remain unlocked for fire safety and emergency access.
Despite having no training in restraint techniques, Ms. Adeleiyi was able to access confidential patient records and made entries into observation notes.
Health board officials told the court the potential consequences “could have been catastrophic.”
It was further revealed that Oluwabunmu had been using the identity of a registered healthcare support worker who later fled the UK to Nigeria using a false passport.
Sentencing Adeleiyi, Judge Recorder Mark Powell KC said:
“You put the patients at risk. You put staff at risk.”
In addition to her suspended prison sentence, Ms. Adeleiyi was ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid community service.
NHS fraud linked to organised crime
Speaking after the hearing, Neil Jones, lead counter-fraud specialist for SBUHB, said the case demonstrated the seriousness with which NHS fraud is treated.
“Today’s sentence illustrates that any fraud perpetrated against the NHS, especially where individuals target vulnerable patients or staff, will be investigated fully and dealt with through the judicial system,” he said.
Mr Jones added that the former care worker had used fraudulent nursing agency identification supplied by an overseas organised crime group.
“Thankfully, she had minimal interaction with patients, and a review carried out by the health board determined that no harm was caused,” he said.
Leave a Reply