A husband and wife team who worked for the NHS have been convicted of defrauding Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (WAHT) of £279,000 by stealing vital medical supplies and selling them back to the trust. The fraud, which ran from October 2016 to September 2019, involved Emmanuel Nbanga, 46, who used his position in stock control at Alexandra Hospital in Redditch to steal medical items from operating theatre supply rooms.
How the Fraud Operated
Nbanga, who was responsible for monitoring stock levels and ordering new products, stole stock and provided it to Solomon Adeyemi, 58, director of Ultimate Medical Limited (UML), a medical supplies company based in Birmingham. UML then repackaged the stolen goods, and Nbanga purchased them back along with other items that were not authentic or suitable medical products. His wife, Remilekun Olusesi, 40, used a shell company called Lawyis Medical UK Ltd to launder the proceeds.
The trust became suspicious when some delivered packages appeared to have been opened before delivery. Investigations revealed that identification numbers on some items matched those previously ordered and delivered, indicating the trust was buying back its own stock. In total, WAHT spent nearly £233,000 on stolen stock, and UML invoiced the trust for £306,000, though some payments were withheld.
Additional Fraud and Convictions
Adeyemi also pleaded guilty to using a forged Nigerian passport and other documents to obtain jobs as a healthcare assistant at two NHS trusts, earning nearly £119,000. The total NHS losses from the frauds amounted to £367,759. Nbanga was found guilty of fraud by abuse of position and fraudulent trading, Adeyemi of fraudulent trading, and Olusesi of money laundering. All three had previously pleaded not guilty.
Nbanga and Adeyemi have been remanded in custody, with Judge Lockhart KC considering them flight risks. Ben Harrison from the NHS Counter Fraud Authority said: 'This case demonstrates the serious consequences that await those who seek to defraud the NHS. Nbanga abused his trusted position to systematically steal vital medical stock and arrange for it to be sold back to the very trust he was employed by.'
Impact on the Trust and Patients
The trust destroyed substandard items supplied by UML, including warm-up jackets, needle containers, and drug labels sourced from China, incurring additional costs to replace them. Stephen Collman, Managing Director of WAHT, stated: 'We cannot, and will not, tolerate theft, fraud, bribery or corruption, especially where it deprives the NHS of much-needed funds and adversely impacts our staff and patients.'
Gayle Ramsay, a specialist prosecutor for the CPS, added: 'Nbanga held a position of responsibility and trust to help ensure that vital supplies for medical operations were there to support staff and patients. He abused this trust and stole hard-pressed taxpayer money for selfish and greedy purposes.'
