Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
JET-SET MUM JAILED FOR £5.7M NHS CON
Travel spree exposed lies of spine condition claim
Least surprising news of the week? According to his niece, a psychologist, Donald Trump “has a personality disorder”. Really?
A MUM has been jailed for six months after trying to con the NHS out of more than £5.7million as she jetted around the world.
Linda Metcalf, 37, claimed she could hardly walk or stand, rarely went out and could not even dress herself, a court heard.
She accused her local NHS trust of medical negligence.
It meant she needed sticks to get around, was unable to drive, had to hire a mobility scooter for shopping and needed a special chair to stand, she claimed.
But surveillance revealed that she had been travelling unaided to the other side of the world.
Between visits to doctors,
Metcalf went to New Zealand, Fiji, Hong Kong, Lanzarote, Tenerife, Thailand, Wales and Scotland.
The IT worker, who has a two-year old daughter, launched her gigantic negligence action rooted in a 24-hour delay in July
2012 in being diagnosed with a spinal condition. Cauda equina syndrome is where a spinal prolapse compresses the nerves at the base of the spine and affects bowel and bladder function. The multi-million sum was Metcalf ’s claim for an adapted home big enough for a carer, compensation for loss of future earnings and childcare funds. An initial payment of £75,000 was made to her before lies were exposed. Claire Toogood, for the Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Trust, said if she had not committed this fraud she could have been entitled to a genuine claim for around £350,000.
But no admission was made until she was “caught out”.
She added: “It is difficult to conceive of a case involving so many instances of contempt over such a long period of time.”
Metcalf, from Bradford but living in Stockport, was said to have “genuine remorse” and paid back £75,000 by selling her home. She appeared at a High Court contempt hearing at Leeds combined court and accepted her dishonesty.
Judge Mr Justice Griffiths said: “She gave a completely stagemanaged appearance, sustained relentlessly over years.”