THREE men jailed last year for defrauding a Welsh health board out of hundreds of thousands of pounds, have been ordered to pay back £560,000 to the NHS.

Mark Evill, aged 48, of Shirenewton; Robert Howells, 66, of Sudbury, near Chepstow; and Michael Cope, 44, of Garden City, Merthyr Tydfil, were convicted of fraud and sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment between them in November last year.

The trio had used rock star aliases on bogus invoices to the health board.

A fraud investigation by the NHS Counter Fraud Service (NHS CFS) proved that Evill, who was contracted as a project manager by Powys Teaching Health Board (PTHB), awarded work to contractor George Morgan Ltd, which he himself owned.

Evill also made payments to Howells and Cope with the money he earned to buy their cooperation.

The trio hit the headlines partly because they had used fake names later revealed to be copying the real names of members of the rock band U2.

The NHS CFS said Evill, Howells and Cope had defrauded PTHB out of £822,236.22.

A Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) investigation by NHS CFC led to the trio - who remain behind bars - being ordered at Swansea Crown Court to pay money back to the NHS.

The court heard that the three must pay back the combined amount of £563,496.95 within an allotted amount of time or face extra time being added their prison sentences.

Cheryl Hill, of NHS CFC, said the court order "sends out a clear message that those found to have defrauded the NHS will not only face prosecution, but that the money stolen will be pursued to ensure that it goes back where it belongs.

"Evill, Howells and Cope were greedy in their bid to re-direct NHS funds into their own pockets, so it is good to see the money being recovered so that it can be used for what it was intended for - patient care.”