Civil servant accused of holding five full-time jobs accepts his 183-hour week was 'impossible' but insists he met every demand

Kashim Chowdhury, 55, is accused of fraudulently pocketing more than £284,000 in full-time salaries from public bodies. He denies nine counts of fraud at Southwark Crown Court. He told jurors that special arrangements with managers let him finish tasks instead of working his contracted hours. The court heard he started a Home Office job in March 2023 while still on sick leave from three other posts.

Between 2020 and 2023, Chowdhury held as many as eight public sector roles concurrently, the court heard.

Among his employers at their peak were Defra, the Department for Business and Trade and the UK Health Security Agency.

Chowdhury told the court: 'On paper that is an impossibility, but in practice different arrangements were made.'