Four ex-staff of government contractor A4e arrested in fraud inquiry
John Dickens • Published 22 Feb 2012 17:30
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FOUR former employees at government contractor A4e have been arrested on suspicion of fraud.
Police visited the firm's offices in High Street, Slough, on Friday as part of the allegations referred to the force by the Department for Work and Pensions.
The company helps get troubled families into work - handling millions of pounds worth of government contracts for welfare-to-work schemes.
Two woman, aged 28 and 49, and two men, aged 35 and 41, were arrested on January 18 from addresses across the Thames Valley.
They have been released on police bail until mid-March.
A Thames Valley Police spokesman said: "The investigation is ongoing and at an early stage, therefore we are unable to comment further at this time."
The company said they discovered the situation in November 2010 through its internal systems.
A4e reported the incident to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) within 48 hours following an internal investigation.
They confirmed three of the staff were suspended once the allegations were made. The other had already left the business.
Andrew Dutton, A4e Group chief executive, said: "A4e has zero tolerance towards fraud, and any instance of fraudulent or otherwise illegal activity is completely unacceptable. We take our responsibility very seriously, and we are committed to using taxpayer's money effectively and efficiently to deliver the best services to the public."
A4e instigated a 100% validation check of all claims under this contract across all their staff, from April 1, 2009, to June 22, 2011 when the contract ended. No further issues were found.
The company added: "The case was referred to Thames Valley Police in May 2011, and the matter now rests with them."
The company is chaired by Emma Harrison who is an advisor to Prime Minister David Cameron.
It employs a workforce of over 3,500 staff across the UK and internationally, operating out of 250 offices.
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