Pharmacist jailed for £1.3m NHS fraud selling cancer drugs
Jignesh Patel and Rahil Patel sentenced at Southwark Crown Court for orchestrating a scheme involving fake prescriptions.
Pharmacist Jignesh Patel has been jailed for orchestrating a £1.3 million NHS prescription fraud. The scheme involved selling cancer drugs, obtained using fake prescriptions, to pharmaceutical wholesalers in Europe. Jignesh Patel owned Wise Pharmacy in Edmonton and the business Actipharm Limited.
Details of the Fraud
Between January 2015 and November 2017, investigators identified 1,639 false prescriptions. These were issued in the names of 24 general practitioners for 440 patients, none of whom had actually been prescribed the drugs. The high-cost leukaemia treatments involved were Sprycel and Noxafil, typically administered in hospital settings. The NHS reimbursed Wise Pharmacy over £1.3 million for these fraudulent prescriptions. Instead of supplying the medication to patients, Actipharm sold the drugs to wholesalers in Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany.
Messages between Jignesh Patel and Rahil Patel, including instructions like "drop the nox to the warehouse today" and "U WANT MORE", were presented as evidence. When Jignesh Patel was arrested in December 2017, authorities seized £190,000 in cash from his properties.
Sentencing and Recovery Efforts
Jignesh Patel, 46, of Royal Drive in New Southgate, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on 16 October. He was found guilty of three counts of fraud by false representation and two counts of converting criminal property. Rahil Patel, 42, of Churston Avenue in Upton Park, received an identical sentence after being convicted of the same charges. His Honour Judge Cole stated, "This was committed out of greed and you were equal partners in the serious fraud designed to make you a lot of money."
Ben Harrison, Head of Operations and Engagement at the NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA), commented, "This case demonstrates that there is no hiding place for those who seek to defraud the NHS." NHSCFA investigators are now pursuing legal action under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to recover the defrauded funds.
Questions this report answers
01Why was the pharmacist jailed?
Pharmacist Jignesh Patel was jailed for his role in a £1.3 million NHS prescription fraud. He and Rahil Patel used fake prescriptions to obtain cancer drugs and sold them to European wholesalers instead of supplying them to patients.
02How much money was involved in the fraud?
The total amount defrauded from the NHS was over £1.3 million. This sum was reimbursed to Wise Pharmacy for the false prescriptions that were identified by investigators.
03What happens next regarding the stolen money?
NHS Counter Fraud Authority investigators are now using powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. They intend to recover the £1.3 million that was obtained through the fraudulent prescription scheme.
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