Fraudster scientist swapped £1,600 of tags at John Lewis

AN NHS scientist has been suspended after she scammed John Lewis out of more than £1,600 by swapping price tags on products.

Maureen Bennie also ‘returned’ a watch she had bought in a sale online – putting it in the box of a more expensive one in order to obtain a refund worth double what she paid.

A disciplinary panel heard that Bennie, 56, who worked for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, conducted the ‘sophisticated’ scam in the three months leading up to Christmas 2017.

She swapped the labels of clothes and an ‘artwork’ at the John Lewis store in Buchanan Galleries, Glasgow, for those of less expensive items. Bennie was caught after an investigation by the high street giant and she pleaded guilty to fraud in 2019.

However, she was discharged from court after she paid back some of the money that she had gained.

At a hearing in front of the Health and Care Professions Tribunal Service panel, Bennie admitted misconduct and has been suspended for 12 months.

The hearing, held remotely, was told that at the time of her scam she was working as a biomedical scientist in haematology and had enjoyed a ‘lengthy professional career’.

In early 2018, Bennie was contacted by the police after a John Lewis employee reported the fraud. It was alleged she had ‘engaged in ticket swapping and refund fraud’ at the Buchanan Galleries store – making ‘financial gains’ totalling £1,660.

The panel heard that an instore investigation had found Bennie ‘swapped higher price tickets to lower price tickets’ on items including a white blouse and a piece of art.

It heard there was also an ‘element of subterfuge’ involved, as she either went into a changing room or purposefully ‘hid herself from view’ when swapping the labels on products.

In one incident, Bennie returned a gold watch she had bought in an online sale in the ‘higher priced packaging’ of a silver watch she had previously bought in the store.

Bennie entered guilty pleas to the charges against her and in August 2019 was granted an ‘absolute discharge’ by Glasgow Sheriff Court after she repaid John Lewis an amount of money less than the total value of her fraud.

At the disciplinary hearing, Bennie admitted misconduct through her dishonesty. In her defence it was claimed that she ‘was not herself’ at the time of the incidents.

However, the panel ruled she had ‘demonstrated limited insight’ into her behaviour and ‘had not taken full responsibility for her actions’.

In addition to Bennie’s 12month suspension, she has been banned from shopping in John Lewis – both in person and online.

‘Was not herself’