Bogus Psychiatrist Ordered to Repay £400,000 for Defrauding NHS

A fraudulent psychiatrist has been ordered to repay more than £400,000 to the NHS or serve an additional two and a half years in prison. Zholia Alemi, 62, was sentenced to seven years in jail in February 2023 after being found guilty of multiple fraud offences.

Alemi falsely claimed she had qualified as a doctor at the University of Auckland in New Zealand. However, a jury at Manchester Crown Court concluded she had forged both the medical degree certificate and a letter of verification, which she used to gain registration with the General Medical Council in 1995.

To avoid detection, Alemi frequently changed jobs across England over more than two decades. The court heard that this strategy helped her evade scrutiny and maintain the appearance of legitimacy. She worked "more or less continuously" for NHS trusts and private healthcare providers across all four UK nations—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—earning an estimated £1.3 million.

This week, a judge ordered her to repay £406,624 in compensation to the NHS. Failure to do so will result in an extended prison sentence.

Adrian Foster of the Crown Prosecution Service said:

"We have robustly pursued the proceeds of crime with the NHS Counter Fraud Authority and have identified all the assets she has available to pay her order. Alemi had little regard for patient welfare. She used forged New Zealand medical qualifications to obtain employment as an NHS psychiatrist for 20 years. In doing so, she must have treated hundreds of patients while unqualified, potentially putting their health at risk."

He added that her fraudulent actions allowed her to dishonestly earn over £1 million in income and benefits, and that the £406,624 repayment will help recover some of the losses to the public purse.

Alemi had previously been convicted at Carlisle Crown Court in 2018 of three counts of fraud and one count of theft after attempting to forge the will and powers of attorney of an elderly patient.

Following that conviction, journalist Phil Coleman, chief reporter for Cumbrian Newspapers, began investigating Alemi's background. His inquiries revealed she had never completed the qualifications necessary to practise medicine. That revelation led Cumbria Police to launch a full investigation.

Alemi, who was born in Iran, had moved to Auckland in the early 1990s, where she failed to complete her medical degree and was denied permission to resist.

E&K Solicitors