Civil servant who juggled five jobs says he was 'surprised' to be charged with fraud

Kashim Chowdhury, a 55-year-old civil servant from east London, claims he was surprised to be charged with fraud after allegedly juggling multiple government jobs. The civil servant stands accused of nine counts of fraud, with prosecutors alleging he earned more than £284,000 between 2020 and 2023. Chowdhury denies acting dishonestly or seeking a dishonest gain.

Chowdhury is accused of working for eight overlapping public sector jobs during this period, each of which required him to work full-time and pay a full-time salary. He began working for the Home Office in March 2023 despite being on sick leave from three other jobs. When questioned by the prosecution about his health issues, Chowdhury claimed he "wanted to carry on working" and that he had agreed to work flexible hours, including weekends.

The prosecution alleges that Chowdhury managed to keep his overlapping jobs secret by working entirely remotely. He reportedly used white make-up to disguise his true identity, while his line manager suspected that he was not Asian due to his lighter appearance. However, Chowdhury denies using make-up during a video call with his line manager and claims he was suffering from anxiety and depression at the time.