Daily Express

TV couple helped dementia faker in £734k care bill con

- By John Twomey

A COUPLE who spoke on TV about the agony of dementia are facing jail for their part in a £734,000 carepackag­e fraud.

Laura and Philip Borrell pleaded guilty to taking part in what is believed to be one of the biggest swindles of its kind.

The pair admitted assisting Laura’s mother Frances Noble by laundering the proceeds of the fraud.

Over 13 years from 2005, Noble faked the extent of her brain disorder to claim the huge sum from Hertfordsh­ire County Council.

The Borrells were due to stand trial at St Albans Crown Court last week but switched their pleas to guilty – with Noble having admitted fraud at an earlier hearing.

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The pair had appeared on ITV’s This Morning with Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield in January 2017.

Laura, then 39, was described as “one of the youngest people to be diagnosed with frontotemp­oral dementia” and told the presenters: “Whilst I can be an ambassador and get the word out, that’s exactly what I want to do.”

She strenuousl­y denies any wrongdoing relating to her dementia – with the fraud not associated to her medical condition but to her mother’s.

Borrell’s lawyer Unan Choudhury said: “She has suffered with serious neurologic­al illnesses in the past and continues to suffer with illnesses now.

“She is receiving specialist treatment for her various conditions. I’m sure medical issues will be discussed in court at her sentencing hearing.”

Noble, 66, received the care package while she, her daughter and sonin-law were living in the village of Weston, near Hitchin, Herts.

Neighbours reported a “daily stream” of arriving Amazon packages, with one local saying: “Delivery vans all day long. Ordering lots of stuff, like money was no object.”

Another resident added: “Then this new top-of-the-range Volvo arrived. You start thinking, what does he do?”

Other expensive cars, including a Mercedes, were spotted on the drive, neighbours claim. Recently, Noble and the Borrells sold up and moved to Berlin. Before they went, a skip outside the house was filled with valuable goods such as computers and bicycles – with some villagers allegedly salvaging items as they were in good condition.

The council launched an investigat­ion after Noble’s carers became suspicious that she was exaggerati­ng the extent of her needs. Laura, 44, and Philip, 47, returned to Britain from Germany to attend court.

Noble is still in Karolinenh­of, a suburb in eastern Berlin, and reportedly continues to deny any wrongdoing. She claims the guilty pleas were a way of bringing an end to the case as they are running out of money to fight it.

She reportedly said: “We’re not the dreadful people they’re trying to make us out to be. My daughter gave up everything to care for me.”

All three will be sentenced on June 24 for conspiracy to commit fraud.

 ?? ?? Screen time ...Laura and Phil Borrell on This Morning in 2017 when they talked about the medical challenge that Laura was facing with her dementia
Screen time ...Laura and Phil Borrell on This Morning in 2017 when they talked about the medical challenge that Laura was facing with her dementia

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