Civil Servant Accused of Juggling Five Full-Time Jobs While Working From Home

A civil servant stands accused of earning close to £350,000 a year by managing five full-time public sector roles concurrently, allegedly using sick notes and working from home to conceal his activities. Kashim Chowdhury, 55, reportedly held multiple government jobs between February 2020 and September 2023.

Chowdhury is on trial at Southwark Crown Court, facing nine counts of fraud, all of which he denies. Prosecutors claim he secured these positions through "false representations" about his employment status during the application process. The jobs were held with Tower Hamlets Council, the Home Office, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the UK Health Security Agency, and the Department of Health and Social Care.

The court heard that in 2023, his manager at the Health Security Agency, Aleesha Adams, arranged a video call to discuss his sick leave. According to Ms. Adams, Chowdhury appeared to be wearing makeup to feign illness, and during the call, the makeup began to peel from his forehead, revealing his actual skin tone. At the time of this alleged deception, he was purportedly being paid for five full-time positions.

"There could be no doubt about it, the defendant had applied make up to his face for this Teams meeting to try and pretend to his line manager that he was unwell," stated Lucy Organ, representing the prosecution. "This almost laughable incident demonstrates, we say, quite how far the defendant was willing to go in his deceit."

Prosecutors contend that Chowdhury "exploited" the work-from-home culture that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic. He allegedly informed his employers that he needed to work remotely to care for his "unwell" mother. However, the prosecutor noted that his workload eventually became "too much to cope with," leading to a decline in his performance.

The court was informed that Chowdhury had taken time off from some jobs due to "mixed anxiety and a depressive disorder," but he did not submit sick notes to all of his employers. The alleged fraud reportedly came to light after the National Fraud Initiative alerted Defra. The trial is ongoing.