Story thread · 2 reports / 2 sources

GP manager who stole £500k from NHS avoids jail after judge warns prisons are 'full to bursting'

gbnews.com · 11dShare

A GP manager who stole more than £500,000 from an NHS surgery to fund a lavish lifestyle has avoided jail after a judge warned Britain's prisons are "full to bursting". Helena Paiva, 33, admitted stealing £517,260.29 from the Albion Street Practice in Southwark, south London, between January 2023 and July 2025. Southwark Crown Court heard that Paiva splashed the stolen cash on a Tesla, designer clothing, luxury handbags and thousands of pounds worth of Amazon orders. But despite the scale of the fraud, Judge Christopher Hehir handed her a three-year prison sentence suspended for three years. TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say The judge cited Britain's overcrowded prisons as one of the factors in his decision, telling the court that jails were "full to bursting". Paiva began stealing just months after being hired as the practice manager. Prosecutor Hannah Williams said she manipulated the surgery's financial statements and bookkeeping records to funnel money into her own account. The 33-y

First report: GP practice manager who stole £500,000 from colleagues and blew it on designer goods that were still being delivered when police searched her house avoids jail due to overflowing prisons — dailymail.co.uk, 11d