'Diabolical': Judge's verdict on conman who cost the NHS £100,000 with bogus illnesses as he jails him for four years Judge blasts Derek Martin, who had 25 aliases, for wasting NHS resources 'Diabolical' conman had accommodation at the taxpayer's expense Visited 73 hospitals from south of England to northern Scotland 90 times By Lizzie Parry and Chris Brooke Derek Martin is jailed for four years after fooling 73 hospitals into treating him for bogus ailments A compulsive liar cost the NHS £100,000 by faking illnesses at hospitals across the country for years. Derek Martin, 69, was jailed yesterday for four years after a judge said he had fooled doctors and nurses in a "diabolical" fraud. The conman used at least 25 aliases and said he had been admitted to 73 hospitals on 90 occasions. His long and complex history of faking his identity even left his own barrister confused. Peter Wishlade said: "I'm not entirely certain who he is, and I don't think anyone actually knows." When Martin was released from one hospital he would simply get himself admitted to another under a false identity. He even tried to fool a psychiatrist who was assessing him by feigning a limp and slurring his words. Martin was also a persistent thief, and in one incident he took a hospital patient's wallet while pretending to be a patient himself. The brazen scam was finally revealed after he pretended to suffer a stroke on a train in May this year. Martin, who is officially homeless, walked into the dock at Teesside Crown Court on crutches, but the judge said he could still be faking even in court. Judge Les Spittle told him: "Our medical resources are vital and they shouldn't be wasted in the way that you are having them wasted. I'm going to lock you up for a period of time that gives some respite to the community. It's diabolical the amount of waste you've created. He said the resources Martin had squandered "could have gone to those who desperately need it." Judge Spittle added: "The temptation is to lock you up for ever, but I can't do that." He described Martin as a "congenital liar" and said: "We can't believe anything he says. All custody is going to do is enable him to tell tales in prison, but keep him out of surgeries and hospitals for a period of time. His barrister didn't recognise him when he arrived at Teesside Crown Court A psychiatrist diagnosed Martin with a chronic "factitious disorder," which causes people to feign or exaggerate symptoms of illness. Prosecutor Sue Jacobs said Martin was taken to the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough after apparently suffering a stroke and gave the false name of David Martin. He was kept in hospital and was given various tests, but his behaviour caused concern. He was protective and aggressive about his belongings, gave inconsistent information and refused an MRI scan claiming he was claustrophobic. After his arrest, it emerged he had accessed £85,000 worth of medical services using the bogus name. Martin admitted one charge of fraud by false representation between May 2 and 9 this year. He asked for four more frauds, relating to treatment worth about £14,000, to be taken into account. Mr Wishlade said Martin had detailed his history of fake hospital admissions in a letter. "The list of the hospitals where he has received treatment is quite remarkable," he added. It ranges from the very south of the country to the north of Scotland, something like 73 separate hospitals. Again, whether it's true or not, I can't say. That's the list he provided. "I did say to him, "What would happen if you were released?" He said, "I'd check into a hospital."" Martin had 110 previous frauds and 60 thefts on a criminal record stretching back to the 1950s. Judge Spittle said: "He's just a persistent offender. Unless he has a Damascene moment in prison, he's going to come out just the same.