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Sydenham woman pleads guilty to fraud
A Sydenham woman pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to housing and council tax benefit fraud against Bromley Council.
Ibilola Bolatito Alli-Balogun, 41, formerly of Goodwood House, Park Court, Lawrie Park Road, Sydenham appeared at Croydon Crown Court on 1st August 2008 and was sentenced to 3 months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 150 hours unpaid work. She admitted submitting a false tenancy agreement to Bromley Council in order to steal benefit money.
Her fraud of housing and council tax benefits totalled £16,781 and covered a period from May 2005 to January 2007. The fraud was initially discovered following a National Fraud Initiative data matching exercise.
Bromley Council will recover the money by pursuing a Confiscation Order under the Proceeds of Crime Act with a final hearing scheduled for November 2008.
Councillor Michael Tickner, Chairman of Bromley’s Audit Sub Committee, said: “This case demonstrates our willingness to use all available sources to catch fraudsters. We employ data matching techniques and work closely with other agencies to prosecute these offenders and protect Bromley’s public money.”
This case brings the total of successful prosecutions to 158 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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