Worthing dentist guilty of defrauding NHS out of more than £92,500
Findon Dental Care's former owner has been convicted of fraud at Hove Crown Court
A dentist has been found guilty of defrauding the NHS of over £92,500 through the manipulation of more than 1,000 dental work claims.
Fariba Shameli, 52, the former owner of Findon Dental Care in Worthing, was convicted yesterday at Hove Crown Court for submitting fraudulent claims to the NHS from March 2013 to June 2018.
Previously, Shameli was also found guilty of fraud by abuse of position in another trial.
All the offences, across both trials, amounted to 1,037 fraudulent claims with a total value of £92,511.
Shameli's fraudulent activities included claiming reimbursement from the NHS for work not performed and dishonestly inflating her claims for payment.
Her motivation for the fraud was to circumvent "clawback" procedures, designed to recover overpayments if dentists fail to meet their contracted Units of Dental Activity (UDA) targets.
The NHS Counter Fraud Authority led the investigation.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) presented evidence, including a detailed examination of patient records, private dental laboratory records, and statements from 13 patients and a trainee dentist.
The court learned that Shameli charged for work never done, wrongly billed the NHS for private patient payments, and claimed for work done by trainee dentists, who do not count towards a dentist's UDA.
She also falsified treatment dates in order to boost her claims for a specific financial year.
Shameli did not attend her trial and was convicted in absentia.
A warrant has been secured for her arrest.
In October 2025, she was previously convicted of one count of fraud by abuse of position and acquitted of another, with a hung jury on three further charges leading to the retrial that concluded yesterday.
Ben Reid, a specialist prosecutor from the CPS, said Shameli systematically defrauded the NHS and compromised funds meant for patient care.
"The CPS will not hesitate to work closely with investigators such as the NHS Counter Fraud Authority to bring those who commit fraud to justice," Reid said.
Confiscation proceedings are ongoing under the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the profits of the criminal activity.