Former school governor jailed for role in multi-million-pound PPE fraud
Former school governor Craig Morris has been jailed for three years and nine months for helping a Covid-era PPE fraud involving millions of boxes of nitrile gloves. A judge said Morris joined the scheme enthusiastically and played a subsidiary but significant role, exploiting urgent demand for protective equipment during the pandemic.
Morris helped with sales and logistics and made representations to support the fraudulent deals. He received seven monthly payments of £5,000 and a £200,000 lump sum, which he used to buy a house. The court heard that more than $4.5 million was defrauded from medical companies in the US and Germany; co-defendant Jogesh Bhandari diverted funds for personal spending and debts. Both men were convicted after a five-week trial.
- Former school governor Craig Morris was jailed for three years and nine months.
- He received £35,000 in monthly payments and a £200,000 lump sum.
- The PPE fraud took more than $4.5 million from medical firms.
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During the Covid-19 pandemic, personal protective equipment such as gloves and masks became extremely scarce and highly sought after by hospitals and medical companies worldwide. Criminals quickly exploited this urgent demand to run fraudulent schemes.
Craig Morris, a school governor, became involved in a scheme that fraudulently sold millions of boxes of nitrile gloves to medical companies. He helped with sales and logistics arrangements and made false claims to support the deals, receiving substantial payments in return for his role.
This particular fraud defrauded medical companies in the United States and Germany of millions of dollars. Such schemes diverted money that could have been spent on legitimate protective equipment and exploited a critical shortage during a public health emergency.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “School governor who ‘enthusiastically’ joined gang that carried out multi-million-pound Covid PPE scam is jailed”.