Medical practice manager stole £155k while having affair with doctor

Medical practice manager, 55, who stole £155,000 from her employer while having an affair with one of the doctors faces jail

• Jacqueline Rodger, 55, had been having an affair with Dr Iain Hathorn from 2011
• Illicit relationship was revealed when medical practice probed cash problems 
• Greenhills Medical Practice, East Kilbride, Lanarkshire no longer operates
• Rodger confessed to embezzling money between April 2014 and February 2018 

A fraudster who stole more than £155,000 from the medical practice she worked at while having an affair with one of the doctors could now face jail time.

Jacqueline Rodger, 55, was having a secret relationship with Dr Iain Hathorn while employed as a practice manager at the Greenhills Medical Practice in East Kilbride, Lanarkshire.

The pair had been having the intimate relationship since 2011 but the illicit affair ended when Rodger got married.

However their secret relationship was revealed when an investigation was launched after the practice faced cash problems.

Rodger, who had worked at the centre since 2008, admitted to embezzling £155,012.71 between April 2014 and February 2018 at Hamilton Sheriff Court in Scotland this morning.

The court was told that the medical centre was even forced to close after the money was stolen when the Greenhills partners ceased their contract with the NHS.

The initial probe into cash problems at the practice led to Hathorn feeling compelled to confess to the secret relationship as he admitted to having a ‘proper sexual affair’ with Rodger.

Rodger later claimed she had been forced into the relationship but her allegations were soon dismissed by a police investigation.

The 55-year-old woman, who claimed to have taken the money due to stress, later contacted her former secret lover when the affair became public.

In a text, she told Hathorn: ‘Iain, it’s Jacqueline. It was me that did it. I’m so sorry, so ashamed. You’re all such lovely people.’

Jacqueline Rodger, 55, confessed to embezzling more than £155,000 from the medical practice she worked at while having an affair with one of the doctors

Meanwhile a message sent to another doctor at the surgery said: ‘I am so sorry and ashamed of what I have done. You were all so good to me, I deserve everything that’s coming my way.’

Rodger had been moving money to her own account disguised as bogus payments to temporary doctors and office supply firms.

She had originally been accused of pocketing £224,375.39 but prosecutors accepted her guilty plea to the lesser amount.

Depute fiscal Jennifer Cunningham told the court how Hathorn was removed from the fraud investigation after he admitted his affair with the prime suspect.

She said: ‘In February 2018, a partner meeting took place at the medical practice where Dr Hathorn stated he had been having an affair with the accused.

‘Dr Hathorn stated he was ashamed but insisted he had nothing to do with the missing money.

‘Dr Hathorn explained the affair started in 2011 and described himself and the accused as being engaged in a ‘proper sexual affair’ that ended once she got married.

‘It was then agreed that Dr Hathorn should have no further part of any disciplinary proceedings involving the accused.’

The prosecutor added: ‘As a result of this investigation and the actions of the accused, the Greenhills partners decided to cease their contract with the NHS and, as of 31st October 2018, Greenhills Medical Practice ceased to exist.

‘Many of the doctors within Greenhills had been part of the practice for over 20 years.

‘The accused embezzled money from the practice directly into her own bank accounts.

‘These payments appeared in the Greenhills account under the guise of locum payments and the purchase of office equipment.’

Rodger has also launched civil proceedings against the medical practice for unfair dismissal and sexual harassment.

Sheriff Martin Jones KC deferred sentence on first offender Rodger until next month for reports and continued her bail.

According to NHS Lanarkshire’s website, Dr Iain Hathorn recently retired after a 38-year career.  

NHS Lanarkshire were approached for comment by MailOnline.

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