Work between Birmingham City Council and West Midlands Police which foiled an attempted fraud of more than £2million has resulted in a two-year prison sentence for a former city council employee.
Lee Jones, 43, was one of three people arrested in January 2008 in relation to the fraud following a proactive investigation by the West Midlands Police Economic Crime Unit, in conjunction with the city council’s auditors.
All of the money was recovered and Jones, who worked as a payments clerk, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud at Birmingham Crown Court on September 11, 2008.
Having worked with the council since 1990, Jones’ employment was terminated following a disciplinary hearing in March last year.
Two other defendants not directly linked to the council were also involved with the court proceedings. Gary Prince, who pleaded guilty to the same charge as Jones, received a 51-week prison sentence, suspended for two years, and was ordered to conduct 250 hours’ unpaid community work. A third defendant, Francis Danks, was found not guilty on November 13, 2008.
The fraud involved diverting the payment of genuine contractor invoices into a bank account set up by the fraudsters. The total sum involved was in excess of £2.3 million.
Paul Dransfield, Birmingham City Council’s Corporate Director of Resources, said: "The protection of public funds is of paramount importance, so we are committed to identifying and eradicating all fraudulent activity.
"In this particular case, I would like to pay tribute to the efforts of the police and council officers involved in quickly identifying a case of fraud that could have had very damaging implications."
