Man busted after using London council's vehicle to work at second job

An employee of a London council has been dismissed for “gross misconduct” after being caught moonlighting and using a council vehicle, a report has found. Westminster City Council said the individual, who has not been named, was found to have breached the local authority’s code of conduct and was fired without completing his probationary period.

An investigation was launched after the council received an online report alleging an employee had been operating a self-employed business from their residence which “compromised” their employment with Westminster City, a half-yearly counter-fraud report read. The tip-off included photographs of the individual using a vehicle provided by the council to carry out their second job.

Anti-fraud investigators confirmed the employee’s identity with his line manager and discovered the vehicle captured in the images had been a hire car assigned to the man while his council-branded vehicle underwent repairs. They then found evidence of the man working his personal business on dates when he was contracted to work for Westminster City.

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A half-yearly report into fraud read: “In collaboration with HR (Human Resources) colleagues from People and Culture, a personnel file review revealed no disclosures regarding his business interests or any secondary employment. Additionally, [investigators] examined the references he provided during recruitment and contacted his last reported employer.

“They confirmed the references had been falsified and that he had only been employed by them for six weeks before being dismissed.” The man was immediately suspended and invited to two disciplinary hearings, which he failed to attend.

It comes as the council’s Corporate Anti-Fraud Service (CAFS) said it had investigated 400 cases, including 168 new referrals, and concluded 75 between April 1 and September 30. Concluding an investigation means anything from a successful prosecution to detection and prevention, deterrence and having no case to answer for.

CAFS said it had also identified 55 “positive outcomes” of a notational value of £410,000. Tenancy fraud brought in the lion’s share - £290,500 - while disabled parking fraud received the most cases of fraud being proved, which was 19 in total.

The report said 325 were still live as of September 30. More than half of those - 186 - involved tenancy and housing cases.

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