Five individuals have been convicted following an elaborate fraud operation that siphoned more than £300,000 from NHS accounts, with the ringleader sentenced to three years and eight months in prison.
Edias Mazambani, 42, exploited his position as a credit controller in the finance department at Guy’s and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust to orchestrate the theft between December 2016 and January 2019. The former NHS employee pleaded guilty to fraud at Southwark Crown Court on 30 January 2026.
The scheme involved Mazambani authorising refund requests for money held in hospital trust accounts, typically funds remaining from overpayments on previous invoices. Over the two-year period, he approved thirty-four fraudulent payments totalling £218,306.84 from GSST accounts.
According to the prosecution case, NHS Counter Fraud Authority investigators prevented an additional ten payments worth £84,492.67 after suspicions were raised, bringing the total attempted theft to £302,799.51. The investigation was conducted by NHSCFA working alongside the Crown Prosecution Service.
Prosecutors established that Mazambani channelled the stolen funds through bank accounts belonging to four co-defendants in an attempt to disguise the money trail. Evidence presented at Southwark Crown Court proved Mazambani personally received a minimum of £78,123.93 from the fraudulent payments.
George Magaya, 49, pleaded guilty to four money laundering offences after receiving £23,623.92 from the fraud scheme. He was sentenced to three years and two months imprisonment. His wife, Rosemary Magaya, 37, was found guilty of two money laundering counts totalling £62,874.60 and received an 18-month sentence suspended for two years.
Sinqobile Pasipandoya, 43, was convicted of one money laundering offence involving £106,288.87 passing through his account and received an 18-month suspended sentence for two years. Michelle Tengende, 40, was convicted for laundering £20,180.37 and sentenced to 12 months imprisonment suspended for two years.
Shilpa Chauhan, Specialist Prosecutor for the Crown Prosecution Service, stated that Mazambani’s actions represented “an appalling breach of trust” as he exploited his position to steal vital taxpayer funds from the NHS. The CPS worked closely with police and NHS investigators to uncover the full extent of the fraud, she noted.
“The Crown Prosecution Service worked closely with the police and NHS investigators to uncover the full extent of the fraud and expose the defendants’ deception. We are pleased that they have now been brought to justice,” Chauhan stated.
The investigation revealed how Mazambani attempted to deflect suspicion by avoiding direct transfers into his own accounts, instead routing stolen money through the co-defendants’ banking facilities to create distance from the fraudulent transactions.
The Crown Prosecution Service confirmed it will now commence Proceeds of Crime Act proceedings against all convicted individuals to recover the criminally obtained funds and assets. These legal measures will target money and property acquired through the fraud scheme, with authorities seeking to reclaim taxpayer funds stolen from the NHS trust.
