A North Yorkshire dentist who masterminded a £450,000 fraud against the NHS has been removed from the Dental Register.
David Heppleston, 45, who practiced in Scarborough, committed the fraud by claiming for 800 phantom patients and also for bogus work on real patients. He was jailed for four years back in 2006, although this was subsequently cut to only two-and-a-half years on appeal.
The true extent of Heppleston's deception could be nearer to £613,000, but a plea bargain reduced the number of fraudulent claims taken into account by the court. He was caught after NHS fraud investigators became suspicious at the abnormally high number of tooth crowns he was claiming payment for.
In 2002 Heppleston appeared on TV quiz show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire where he won £64,000.
A disciplinary committee of the General Dental Council said that: "In determining the appropriate sanction the committee has considered all the options in turn, starting with the least serious.
David Heppleston, 45, who practiced in Scarborough, committed the fraud by claiming for 800 phantom patients and also for bogus work on real patients. He was jailed for four years back in 2006, although this was subsequently cut to only two-and-a-half years on appeal.
The true extent of Heppleston's deception could be nearer to £613,000, but a plea bargain reduced the number of fraudulent claims taken into account by the court. He was caught after NHS fraud investigators became suspicious at the abnormally high number of tooth crowns he was claiming payment for.
In 2002 Heppleston appeared on TV quiz show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire where he won £64,000.
A disciplinary committee of the General Dental Council said that: "In determining the appropriate sanction the committee has considered all the options in turn, starting with the least serious.
"It decided that neither conclusion of the case nor postponing judgement would adequately reflect the gravity of the fraud.
"The committee considered and rejected suspension as being inadequate to protect the public interest.
"This fraud diverted money from the treatment of patients and was a gross breach of trust.
"It has therefore decided to direct the Registrar to erase the name of David Geoffrey Heppleston from the Dentists Register."
Heppleston had sent a letter to the GDC apologising for his crimes and pleading for leniency. He will be allowed to reapply to the Dental Register after one year.
