JAIL FOR BENEFIT FRAUDSTERS

Two former Ramsgate residents have both been jailed for their part in a benefit fraud that lasted ten years and saw them receive £44,685 of benefits that they were not entitled to.

Lynda Thomas (47), formerly of Hereson Road, Ramsgate, claimed Housing Benefit from December 1999 to April 2009 on the basis that she was renting a room at a property in Hereson Road, Ramsgate from John Hall (42) also formerly of Hereson Road, the owner of the property. The rent charged was declared at £65 per week and a proof of rent letter was submitted from Mr. Hall.

An allegation was received, advising that Miss Thomas and Mr. Hall were actually living together at the address as husband and wife. An investigation started and Mr. Hall and Miss Thomas were interviewed about the allegation jointly with the Department for Work and Pensions.

At interview, Miss Thomas denied the allegation and left the interview without being shown all the evidence which had been obtained during the investigation. Mr. Hall attended the interview and admitted that they were a couple and that they had always been a couple since the start of the claim. He also admitted that he had provided a letter to the council which was false. The overpaid Income Support totalled £17,477.82, while Housing Benefit amounted to £27,208.00.

The case was heard at Canterbury Crown Court on Thursday (16 December) and Judge Williams in her summing up stated that the claim was fraudulent from the outset. Maximum credit was given for them pleading guilty to the charges at the earliest opportunity. Mr. Hall pleaded guilty to providing a false rent letter and it was argued that he was only actively involved in the fraud from the date of the letter. However the Court found it an unattractive argument, as the fraud was committed from the outset and his criminality fell just short of Miss Thomas.

The Court took into account their mitigation, medical problems, family situation with their two teenage children and Mr. Hall's elderly mother who was ill with cancer. The offence fell into the second most serious category for sentencing guidelines due to the prolonged and deliberate dishonesty, and as such, there was no choice but to issue custodial sentences.

Lynda Thomas was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment to run concurrent for each count, while John Hall was sentenced to eight months imprisonment.

Cllr. Simon Moores, Cabinet Member for Customer Services and Regulatory Services, said: “This is a clear case of someone deliberately falsely claiming benefits for a number of years. As the court said, it’s one of the most serious categories of dishonesty and a prison sentence is the only proper way to deal with this. This couple have swindled more than £40,000 out of the public purse over a decade. That’s an appalling level of benefit fraud and one they will now have to pay for.”