Hampshire and Isle of Wight Counter Fraud Service
Hosted by North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group
Issue 41: Sept 2014
Court: Isle of Wight fraudster stole from GP practice he managed
A Practice Manager who stole
more than £158,000 from a
doctor’s surgery over eight years,
used the money for holidays, a
car and a £5,000 model train set.
John Pepper was jailed for two
years and eight months when he
appeared at the IW Crown Court
on Monday 7th July.
Pepper, 62, or Forrest Road,
Winford, began to steal in 2005, a year after he was employed as
Practice Manager - and
continued until September last
year when the theft was
discovered by a colleague.
During that period Pepper used
the practice bank card to
withdraw cash and disguised the
transactions by falsifying invoices
to make the books balance, said
Christopher Stopa, prosecuting.
He started stealing small
amounts which escalated over
the years.
Pepper, who earned £30,000,
told the police he had £50,000
debts and was glad he had been
caught.
John Pepper
The thefts were like a drug to
him and they snowballed after he
discovered how easy it was, he
told officers. He had
admitted the theft and false
accounting at an earlier hearing.
Pepper built up £20,000 savings
and investments with what he
stole and spent £10,000 on a car
and £5,250 on a model railway
collection and went on holidays
abroad the court heard.
The thefts were like a drug to
him and they snowballed
after he discovered how easy
it was, he told officers.
Robert Forrest, defending, said
his client was full of remorse and
was very keen to repay what he
had stolen.
Judge Susan Evans ordered
Pepper to repay, as
compensation, what he stole
from Dower House by the
January next year, or face an
extra two years and four months’
imprisonment.
Story reproduced with kind permission of the
Editor, Isle of Wight County Press
News
Page 2
Contents
Practice Manager jailed
for £158k fraud
New investigator joins
the team
Using a home PC
safely
Fraud Alert
Leaflets and posters
Cover
The Hampshire and Isle of
Wight Counter Fraud Service
are pleased to welcome a new
Local Counter Fraud Specialist
to the team.
Page 2
Page 3
Man jailed for
fraudulent job
applications
Page 4
Scams and hoaxes
Page 5
Useful contacts
Page 6
Heather Greenhowe joined on
the 21st July, having previously
worked as a detective for
Hampshire Constabulary from
2001.
Heather brings a wealth of
relevant experience to the role,
having been responsible for
undertaking both criminal and
disciplinary investigations in
her previous post.
Heather Greenhowe
Using your home computer safely
Some hints and tips to protect you at home:
Always use up-to-date virus protection
Use secure passwords and change them regularly
Ensure your wireless security is enabled
Ensure a firewall is running
Don’t download unknown software offered on
unexpected ‘pop-ups’
Never click a link in an e-mail from an unknown
sender
Don’t forward e-mail warnings and alerts unless you
are certain they are genuine
Remember - just because you read it on the internet doesn't make it true!
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Help and advice
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Local NHS sites have been subject to a series of incidents
involving the theft of staff property by organised crime
gangs.
In particular, purses and wallets have been stolen, with
credit cards and identity documents being a specific target.
The normal method is for one of the gang to follow a
member of staff into an NHS building and then target
unattended bags and purses.
To protect yourself and your colleagues, please remember
the following:
If you are entering a building and there is someone
behind you, check their identity and that they have
right of entry.
If you are in a building and you see someone that you
do not recognise in an area where they should not be,
do not be afraid to challenge them.
Ensure that you wear your NHS identification badge
visibly at all times.
Do not leave your handbag or personal items
unattended. Valuables should be locked away or kept
with you.
Following such a theft, a gang member will often telephone
the individual, pretending to be a bank employee asking for
the PIN number. A bank will never request your PIN. Do
not give this
information to
anyone. Report
suspicious incidents
to your Manager,
your Local Security
Management
Specialist and the
Police.
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Counter fraud leaflets and posters can
be ordered directly from your Local
Counter Fraud Specialist.
News
A South Shields man who failed
1,000 times to get a job as an
NHS doctor using false details
has been jailed for 15 months
following a fraud investigation by
NHS Protect.
Protect investigators, and they all
contained misrepresentations
regarding his previous
educational qualifications,
professional memberships and
employment history.
Bai Bai Ahmed Kabia, 46, of
South Shields, Tyne & Wear, was
found guilty of 12 counts of
Fraud by False Representation
after making a series of
applications to numerous NHS
Trusts to work as a doctor. He
was sentenced to 15 months'
imprisonment for each offence,
to run concurrently. Dr Kabia
admitted to making over 1,000
job applications, none of which
were successful.
“This type of offence is
made more serious
because it erodes the
confidence of the public
in the NHS. Dr Kabia
showed breath taking
arrogance.”
Kabia claimed to be registered as
a doctor with the General
Medical Council, to have been
awarded an MSc from University
College London and to be a
member of the Royal College of
Physicians - none of these
assertions were true. Kabia was
arrested in a joint operation with
Northumbria Police.
Kabia, who is stateless, had
studied as a doctor in Russia and
moved to the UK in 1994. He
Bai Bai Ahmed Kabia
trained as a podiatrist and
worked for some time on a selfPicture reproduced with kind permission of ncjMedia Ltd
employed basis. In 2013,
The NHS Protect investigation
Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust
proved that between November
contacted NHS Protect after
2011 and February 2013, Dr
interviewing Kabia for a job.
Kabia had submitted 245
NHS Protect issued an alert to
unsuccessful job applications to
trusts across England and Wales,
numerous NHS trusts to work as requesting any information on
PaulA
Ball;
“stillof
highly
a doctor.
sample
theseremorseful”
job applications received from
applications was studied by NHS Dr Kabia.
Page 4
Dave Horsley, Anti-Fraud
Specialist, NHS Protect, said
today, "Dr Kabia submitted job
applications to the NHS that he
knew to be false, trying to
deceive his potential employers.
Had he been successful, Dr
Kabia's appointment would have
given him direct access to treat
patients. It is pleasing that Dr
Kabia was unsuccessful in his
applications and that NHS
employment procedures were
found to be robust and effective.
The custodial sentence reflects
the seriousness of these offences
and will serve as a powerful
deterrent to others".
At sentencing, the Judge
commented, "This type of
offence is made more serious
because it erodes the confidence
of the public in the NHS. Dr
Kabia showed breath taking
arrogance."
During the proceedings, the
Judge also commended NHS
Protect's Dave Horsley for his
work on the case.
Further information- http://
www.thejournal.co.uk/news/
north-east-news/south-shieldsfraudster-showed-breathtaking7100338
Scams and hoaxes
Report spam text messages
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Stay aware!
Other recently reported local incidents
Are you fed up with
receiving unwanted
‘spam’ text messages on
your mobile phone?
NHS employees have reported bogus
calls from an individual claiming to be
from an IT Department, attempting
to gain access to the user’s PC.
They can be reported by
forwarding the text to
7726 (the numbers used
spell ‘SPAM’ if you were
sending a text). If you are
a Vodafone customer,
you should forward the
text to 87726.
NHS employees have reported
suspect calls from an individual
claiming to be from the organisation’s
Occupation Health Department.
Patients have reported receiving
apparently bogus telephone calls from
a ‘Mr Matthews’ from ‘The Medical
Care Centre’, claiming the patient has
missed an appointment and offering
to visit them.
This will help network
providers track down and
deal with marketing
cheats.
Scam advice – lotteries,
sweepstakes and competitions
What it is...
Every day, people open their post, turn on their
computers or switch on their mobile phones to
be told they have won something exciting in a
prize draw, sweepstake or lottery – without even
having entered. While some of these approaches
are legitimate, many are dishonest.
Most likely approach – email, letter, telephone
call, text message.
You are asked to send an administration fee, but
once you’ve sent your money you may hear
nothing more. Or you are told to ring a
premium rate 090 number to claim your prize.
The longer you stay on the line, the more money
the scammer earns. Usually you get nothing in
return, but if you do receive something it is
worth very little and not what you were
promised.
■ Remember that if you win something you
shouldn’t have to pay anything to receive your
prize, not even the cost of a telephone call.
How to protect yourself
■ Don’t dial an 090 number unless you are
absolutely sure how much you will be charged
and you are willing to pay for it.
■ For clear, practical consumer advice call
Consumer Direct 08454 04 05 06 or go to
www.consumerdirect.gov.uk
Reproduced from Office of Fair Trading Leaflet code OFT831 with kind permission.
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Making contact
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Counter Fraud Service
Sam Willoughby
Head of Counter Fraud &
Local Counter Fraud Specialist
01962 876654
07946 370497
[email protected]
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Local Security Management
Specialists (LSMS)
For reports of NHS crime that isn't fraud
(Theft, assault, criminal damage, harassment etc.)
Hampshire CCGs
Simon Zammit
07771 814956
[email protected]
Isle of Wight CCG
Portsmouth CCG
Solent NHS Trust
Southampton City CCG
Alec Gaines
Isle of Wight CCG
Connie Wendes
01983 552192
[email protected]
Local Counter Fraud Specialist
Solent NHS Trust
To be appointed
Hampshire
Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust
Mark Smith (Winchester)
Gerry Hauman (B’stoke)
01962 825220
01256 314824
01962 876655
07733 226824
[email protected]
Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
North East Hampshire & Farnham CCG
North Hampshire CCG
Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust
Jen Baskerville
Local Counter Fraud Specialist
01962 876668
07881 954851
[email protected]
Fareham and Gosport CCG
University Hospital Southampton NHS
Foundation Trust
South Eastern Hampshire CCG
West Hampshire CCG
Heather Greenhowe
Local Counter Fraud Specialist
01962 876637
07781 954819
[email protected]
Support LCFS
Portsmouth
Hospitals NHS
Trust (QA)
University Hospital
Southampton NHS
Foundation Trust
[email protected]
[email protected]
Simon Zammit
07771 814956
[email protected]
Sandra Hodgkyns
02380 777222 Ext 6222
[email protected]
Useful contacts
The NHS Fraud &
Corruption Reporting 0800 028 4060
Line
The NHS Fraud
www.reportnhsfraud.nhs.uk
Reporting Website
The Counter Fraud NHS
Business Services www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/fraud
Authority
For checking suspicious
www.snopes.com
e-mails:
Office of Fair Trading www.tradingstandards.gov.u
advice - beating the k/aberdeen/images/
scammers scambuster_pdf.pdf
Further information on our web-pages
Police advice and
http://www.met.police.uk/
information on various docs/little_book_scam.pdf
scams and hoaxes
Protect against identity www.identity-theft.org.uk
www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/
theft microsites/idtheft
www.nhsfraud.org
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The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Counter Fraud
Service take no responsibility for the accuracy of
content of any external website