2 Indian-origin pharmacists jailed in UK over £1.3m NHS cancer drug fraud

Jignesh Patel (left), Rahil Patel (right). Two Indian-origin pharmacists have been jailed for six years each in the UK after using fake prescriptions to obtain medicines worth around £1.3 million from the National Health Service (NHS), which prosecutors said were intended for resale in Europe, Daily Mail reported.Jignesh Patel, 46, and Rahil Patel, 42, were convicted of fraud by false representation and converting criminal property after submitting thousands of claims based on prescriptions that had not been issued by doctors. The offences took place between 2014 and 2017, with investigators identifying 1,639 fraudulent prescriptions linked to 440 patients.The case came to light when Barnet Clinical Commissioning Group found discrepancies between prescriptions submitted by pharmacies and patient records. Most of the suspicious claims were traced to Wise Pharmacy on Fore Street in Edmonton, north London.An investigation by the NHS Counter Fraud Authority found that the pharmacy had dispensed high-cost medicines, including Sprycel, used to treat leukaemia, and Noxafil, prescribed to prevent or treat certain fungal infections in patients undergoing chemotherapy.Jignesh Patel was the d...