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Eltham couple and Penge man plead guilty to fraud
Three people including an Eltham couple pleaded guilty to benefit fraud against Bromley Council.
Kibwe Thomas, 26, of Jasmine Grove, Penge pleaded guilty to defrauding Bromley Council of £5,253 in housing and council tax benefits over a period October 2007 to May 2008. He had failed to notify a change in circumstances in that his Jobseekers Seekers Allowance had ceased. The case was identified through a data matching exercise. Thomas was sentenced on the 6th August 2008 at Bromley Magistrates Court to a Conditional Discharge for 2 years and ordered to pay £250 costs to Bromley Council. The Council is in the process of recovering this overpayment.
In a separate case a couple from William Barefoot Drive, Eltham were convicted of defrauding Bromley Council in respect of benefit claims for a property in Dunkery Road, Mottingham. Daren Walder,39, changed his plea to guilty at Croydon Crown Court to housing and council tax benefit fraud over a period May 2002 to October 2002. He had failed to declare that the mother of his child was living with him and that her mother owned the property. He was sentenced on the 1st August 2008 to 120 hours Community Punishment Order and ordered to pay £3,290 compensation at £100 per month.
Earlier, in May 2008 Louise Walder,33, had pleaded to council and housing benefit fraud in respect of the Mottingham address over a period November 2004 to August 2005. She had failed to declare that her mother owned the property and that her husband was living with her and that he was in employment. She was sentenced in May 2008 at Bromley Magistrates Court to a 2 year conditional discharge, ordered to pay £350 costs and also compensation costs of £5,000. In total the couple defrauded the authority of £8,975. Any balance on the overpayment will be recovered by Bromley Council. The case was initially referred through the National Fraud Initiative data matching exercise.
Councillor Michael Tickner, Chairman of Bromley’s Audit Sub Committee, said: “These further successful prosecutions employing data match techniques is further evidence of using all tools available to pursue these fraudsters. We will aim to minimise losses through fraud and protect Bromley’s public money.”
These cases bring the total of persons prosecuted to 165 since Bromley and Greenwich Councils started working in partnership to track, trace and prosecute benefit cheats.
Anyone with information about a suspected benefit fraud should contact (in strict confidence) the Fraud Hotline on 0800 169 6975 or email audit@bromley.gov.uk
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