In a surprising disclosure, a woman who posed as a certified psychiatrist in the UK for nearly two decades using a falsified diploma has finally been prosecuted. Zholia Alemi, originally from Iran, has been condemned to prison and ordered to repay more than £400,000 she gained illegally while working under false pretenses.
Alemi’s fraud began in the mid-1990s, when she relocated from New Zealand to the UK. Despite failing to complete her medical degree in Auckland, she was able to avoid the UK’s severe medical entrance standards by taking advantage of a loophole designed for Commonwealth-trained doctors.
Foreign medical graduates are often needed to pass the PLAB (Professional and Linguistic Assessments Board) test, however Alemi provided fake papers and received a medical license without adequate evaluation.
Zholia Alemi secured employment across various NHS facilities, treating hundreds, possibly thousands, of vulnerable patients. Crown Prosecution Service’s Adrian Foster described her actions as reckless and dangerous, stating, “She must have treated hundreds of patients when she was unqualified to do so, potentially putting those patients at risk.”
The fraud went unreported until 2018, when Alemi sought to fake an elderly patient’s will in order to obtain a £300,000 house. That incident sparked further investigations, revealing a long history of forgery and fraud. She was ultimately found guilty of fraud and sentenced to five years in prison.
As prosecutors dug deeper, more crimes came to light. In addition to his initial term, Alemi was recently ordered by the court to refund more than £400,000 in illicit earnings or face further imprisonment. It is estimated that she earned over £1.2 million throughout her illegal career in the NHS.
This case has sent shockwaves through the UK’s medical community. The General Medical Council (GMC) has now launched a comprehensive review of medical licenses granted to nearly 3,000 foreign doctors in the 1990s. Authorities fear that others may have used similar tactics to enter the healthcare system undetected.
The GMC is working to tighten regulations and ensure that every medical professional practicing in the UK has been properly vetted. In a public statement, the Council reassured patients that measures are being put in place to prevent such a scandal from ever happening again.
Zholia Alemi’s actions have not only cost taxpayers and put lives at risk, but also undermined public trust in the healthcare system. Her case stands as a chilling reminder of how a single forged diploma can wreak havoc for years.
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