03/04/2006

Dentist jailed for three years for fraud

A dentist has been jailed for three years for conning over £600,000 out of the NHS.

Michael Semeniuk, 45, from Willerby near Hull, had pleaded guilty to 27 sample courts of obtaining property by deception.

Hull Crown Court heard how Semeniuk made 3,500 false payment claims over the course of six years, while working at the Spring Bank dental practice in Hull.

He admitted making false claims of between £5,000 and £8,000 from September 1998. The claims were made using fake names and addresses for patients and signatures forged by Semeniuk.

The Dental Practice Board eventually discovered Semeniuk's fraud five years later. However, he was allowed to continuing practising under supervision after his arrest. The practice eventually closed because of financial pressures last May.

The case is understood to be the largest criminal investigation against a dentist in the history of the NHS Counter Fraud Service.

(KMcA)


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