Alec Gandy, 42, of Housman Way, Cleobury Mortimer, Kidderminster, was sentenced to two years and six months’ imprisonment at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 16 January 2026. He had pleaded guilty to fraud by abuse of position, contrary to the Fraud Act 2006, at Dudley Magistrates’ Court on 22 April 2025.
Matthew Lane, 43, of Peggs Way, Basingstoke, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and 200 hours of unpaid work at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 16 January 2026.
He had pleaded guilty to entering into or becoming concerned in the acquisition, retention, use or control of criminal property, contrary to section 328 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 20 May 2025.
Kaylee Wright, 37, of Lark Rise, Cleobury Mortimer, Kidderminster, was sentenced to 25 days of rehabilitation activity at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 16 January 2026. She had pleaded guilty to entering into or becoming concerned in the acquisition, retention, use or control of criminal property, contrary to section 328 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 20 May 2025.
Gandy was employed by Dudley Integrated Health and Care (DIHC) NHS Trust as a senior manager responsible for the management of Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) staff in the Primary Care Networks.
He used his position to set up Lane and Wright, who were not DIHC employees, as ‘ghost’ contractors, with one claiming to be a physician associate and the other an advanced paramedic.
Gandy paid a total of £123,000 into their accounts between August 2022 and May 2023.
Their crimes were exposed when a DIHC audit check showed that neither Lane nor Wright were registered to the organisations named on their invoices.
DIHC passed their findings to the NHS Counter Fraud Authority, whose own enquiries showed that both Lane and Wright were receiving payments for these invoices into their respective bank accounts before transferring a large portion of the money back into Gandy’s personal account. This was repeated periodically throughout the duration of the fraud.
Separate arrest warrants for all three subjects were executed on 9 January 2024. During Gandy’s interview under caution, he made a full and frank confession to raising the ghost contractors and producing the invoices. He also admitted to having a gambling problem.
During Lane’s voluntary interview, he claimed that he had initially gone to Gandy in desperate need of money and that Gandy told him that he could arrange for him to be paid by the trust he was working for. When Lane said that he was too sick to work, Gandy stated that he wouldn’t need to work and that all he needed to do was submit an invoice for payment.
During Wright’s interview under caution, she claimed that Gandy paid her the money to prevent him from gambling it away, but she could not explain why she had paid large amounts back to him, almost immediately.
NHSCFA investigators will now use their powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2002 to trace and recover these lost funds. A POCA mention has been listed for 29 June 2026 at Wolverhampton Crown Court.
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.
“The NHS Counter Fraud Authority remains firmly committed to working tirelessly to protect vital NHS resources and we will continue to pursue those who seek to defraud our health service.
“We encourage anyone with suspicions of fraud against the NHS to report it through our confidential reporting channels.”
You can report NHS fraud anonymously on 0800 028 40 60, our 24-hour reporting line powered by Crimestoppers. You can also report it confidentially on our website at www.cfa.nhs.uk/reportfraud.