A woman was placed on $500,000 bail yon friday by acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson when she appeared before her charged with defrauding the National Insurance Scheme by supplying forged medical claims for payment.
Suraj Devi Chung was charged with seven counts of forgery and seven counts of obtaining property upon a forgery. It is alleged that between December 5 – 11, 2007 she forged one Medi Care Pharmacy bill to show it was issued by the pharmacy. She also forged bills from the pharmacy between September 26 – October 1, 2007; July 28 – 31, 2007; February 1 – 5, 2008; October 11 – 17, 2008; September 4 – 23, 2008 and June 11 – 19, 2007.
It is alleged that on August 28, 2007, she defrauded the sum of $64,960 from NIS by virtue of a forged Medi Care Pharmacy bill. It is also alleged that on October 9, 2007, she received $44,450; on October 4 2008, she received $64,960; on January 8, 2008, she received $44,450; on November 18, 2008, she received $64,960; on March 12, 2008, she received $71,225 and on July 10, 2007, she received $29,715.
Chung was represented by attorney Ronald Burch-Smith who told the court that his client is 36 years and resides at 13 Hendbury Avenue, Nandy Park. He queried the procedure of police to arrest someone without conducting proper investigations.
He applied for reasonable bail and said that his client does not pose a flight risk and would not tamper with the witnesses in the matter.
Police Prosecutor Stephen Telford said that Chung purchased medication from Medi Care Pharmacy and during the time made submissions to NIS for medical claims. She was paid a total of $466,375 while it was later discovered that her purchases at the pharmacy amounted to $29,050.
Telford said she had every intention of defrauding the NIS by changing that monetary value of the bills she received and it was serious because she had committed the offence more than one time. He asked for substantial bail to be granted.
Chung was then placed on $250,000 bail on the forgery charges and $250,000 bail for obtaining money by forgery. As a condition of her bail, she must report with the CID every Monday and Friday. The matter was then put down for July 30 in court 2.
