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BABERGH'S FRAUD TEAM HOT ON THE HEELS OF CHEATS
Summary
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Babergh District Council's anti-fraud team has managed to secure its 31st benefit fraud conviction this year - after a bumper crop of cases appeared in court last week.
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Babergh District Council's anti-fraud team has managed to secure its 31st benefit fraud conviction this year - after a bumper crop of cases appeared in court last week.
Albert Haigh, 75, from First Avenue, Sudbury, pleaded guilty to eight charges of dishonestly making false statements while appearing at Sudbury Magistrates' Court on Friday (31/3).
Babergh officers found that Mr Haigh had deliberately failed to declare a Naval pension while claiming Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit worth more than £17,000.
The case was adjourned until April 24 for pre-sentence reports to be prepared and magistrates have mentioned that all options - including prison - will be considered.
Mr Haigh has already made an arrangement to repay his Council Tax Benefit and will be contacted by Babergh about increasing the repayments of his Housing Benefit.
Also at Sudbury Magistrates' Court on Friday, Mary Lawrence and Shaun Crawford, of Woolverstone Close, Pinewood, each pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to declare changes of circumstance - in respect of Job Seeker’s Allowance ceasing and cash work being undertaken by Mr Crawford.
Magistrates imposed a six-month community punishment order on Mr Crawford and gave Miss Lawrence one year's conditional discharge. Each were ordered to pay £150 in costs and to pay back Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit overpayments to the Council.
Gavin Alexander, of Oxford Drive, Hadleigh, pleaded guilty at Sudbury Magistrates' Court on Friday to failing to declare a change of circumstance - in respect of receiving Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit.
He was given a one year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £100 in costs.
The Council has also issued 26 other sanctions (cautions and administrative penalties) in addition to its prosecutions so far this year.
Bob Southgate, Babergh District Council's Head of Revenues, said: "Our impressive track record in consistently securing convictions shows we are constantly working to unmask those individuals who continue to think it is acceptable to cheat taxpayers out of their money in this way.
"It is only a question of time before we root out people who are deliberately cheating the system in order to gain more than they are entitled to from the public purse. The message is clear - crime does not pay and we will come after you."
These convictions come in the same month the Council secured its first ever prison sentence for a fraudster who repeatedly claimed for housing and council tax benefit he was not entitled to.
Suspected fraud can be reported, anonymously if necessary, any time of the day or night through our benefit fraud web pages or via the Council's fraud hotline on (01473) 825797.
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Last updated on: 28 July 2008 | Date of next review: 28 July 2009
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