Former NHS worker jailed for £279k fraud involving hospital stock theft

A former NHS assistant has been sentenced to eight years in prison for orchestrating a £279,000 fraud involving stolen hospital stock at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (WAHT).

Emmanuel Nbanga, 46, from Solihull, was found guilty of fraud by abuse of position and fraudulent trading at Worcester Crown Court earlier this year. Alongside two accomplices, he stole supplies from operating theatres at the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch and sold them back to WAHT through a company called Ultimate Medical (UK) Ltd (UML).

Solomon Adeyemi, 57, the director of UML, was also sentenced to seven years in prison, while Remilekun Olusesi, 40, received a 30-month suspended sentence for her involvement in money laundering activities associated with the fraud.

The investigation revealed that the trust was unknowingly purchasing its own stolen stock, amounting to nearly £233,000. Additional substandard products sourced from China further inflated UML’s invoiced amount, posing a risk to patient safety.

Ben Harrison, Head of Operations and Engagement at the NHS Counter Fraud Authority, highlighted the severe impact of the fraud, noting that "every pound stolen from the NHS is a pound that cannot be spent on frontline services."

The case forms part of an ongoing effort to combat fraud within the NHS, ensuring hospital funds are preserved for patient care and safety.

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