Two dentists who ran a spa practice have been sent to prison for defrauding the NHS nd patients of the NHS out of thousands of pounds
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The sentencing at Birmingham Crown Court follows on from a thorough investigation conducted by the NHS Counter Fraud Service.
The two men involved were sent to prison for 30 months and 20 months after a trial which lasted for nine weeks.
The two men involved were sent to prison for 30 months and 20 months after a trial which lasted for nine weeks.
Around 2500 patients have come forward to help the NHS with bringing the two men to justice and twelve former members of staff also gave evidence against the two men.
Staff from the spa described how they felt to frightened to stand up to the pair. Instead they told the authorities and got a computer backup disc to the police as evidence of the crimes. The two men proceeded to follow the employees to the police station where they were then arrested after the disc was handed over.
The pair admitted that they had been motivated by greed. The judge ruled that they had deliberately set out to overcharge NHS patients and ruin the previously good reputation of the spa.
All suspicions of fraud against the NHS that are reported and will be followed up. This case highlights that fact, the whistleblowers were all thanked by the NHS.
A separate confiscation hearing will now be held. For the purposes of sentencing the judge decided that 25,000 was defrauded in total, suggesting that so much had been concealed it would not be possible ever to determine the exact amount.