Alec Gandy sent payments of £123,000 to non-NHS employees Matthew Lane and Kaylee Wright between August 2022 and May 2023 while employed by Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust as a senior manager responsible for the management of additional roles reimbursement scheme staff in primary care networks.

Lane was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and 200 hours of unpaid work and Wright to 25 days of rehabilitation activity at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 16 January 2026.

Ben Harrison, head of operations at the NHS Counter Fraud Authority, said: ‘This outcome endorses the value of our robust and objective approach to ensuring that anyone who attempts to defraud the NHS is brought to justice.

‘This was a calculated scheme that diverted significant public funds away from frontline patient care. Our investigation, with the support of West Mercia Police, uncovered a deliberate abuse of position, with Gandy exploiting his senior role to manipulate NHS payment systems for personal gain.'

DIHC was dissolved in 2024 and its staff integrated into The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, primary care networks, Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board.

The issue was identified at the time and escalated to the NHS Counter Fraud Team.

A spokesperson for NHS Black Country ICB, said: ‘The Black Country ICB is aware of this fraud case, which was previously handled by Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust. 

‘The NHS takes allegations of fraud extremely seriously and we do not tolerate any misuse of public funds. 

‘While we strongly condemn the behaviour of this individual, we are reassured that the measures taken in Dudley have not only addressed the issue but have also strengthened financial processes, making it significantly more difficult for such actions to occur in the future. We can confirm that the individual involved no longer works for the organisation.'