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By Lizzy Chirkpi
A 61-year-old UK-based Nigerian doctor, Richard Akinrolabu, has been sentenced to three years in prison after admitting defrauding the National Health Service (NHS) of more than £268,000.
Akinrolabu, a specialist registrar in obstetrics and gynaecology at Princess Royal University Hospital part of King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust pleaded guilty to four counts of Fraud by False Representation at Woolwich Crown Court on 4 November 2025.
Between 2018 and 2021, he worked night and on-call shifts at three other NHS trusts while claiming he was unfit for similar duties at his primary workplace. He sometimes took sick leave or reduced duties, forcing the hospital to hire locum doctors to cover his shifts.
The fraud came to light in 2021 after King’s College Hospital received information that Akinrolabu had been working nights at Basildon Hospital. Investigations by the hospital and the NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA) later uncovered additional shifts at Princess Alexandra Hospital, East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust, and Mid-South Essex NHS Foundation Trust.
Akinrolabu was interviewed under caution in 2022 but gave a “no comment” response. Following further evidence gathering, he was charged and convicted.
In sentencing, Judge David Miller said: “You lied to occupational health, your colleagues and your employer. The public doesn’t expect doctors to lie for personal gain.”
Ben Harrison, Head of Operations at the NHSCFA, described the case as a “clear and deliberate abuse of trust,” adding that the stolen funds “should have supported patient care.”
Akinrolabu previously made headlines in 2006 when he was cleared of allegations involving an alleged offer to perform an illegal abortion. A GMC panel dismissed the claims due to inconsistencies, though he admitted to an affair with the complainant.