August 19th, 2011
As a result of joint working between Eastbourne Borough Council and The Department for Work and Pensions, a 49-year-old woman has been sentenced to eight weeks in custody for committing benefit fraud over a three year period.
Dawn Jukes, of Croxden Way, was in receipt of Income Support, Housing and Council Tax benefit based on the fact she was virtually unable to walk, but she failed to notify Eastbourne Borough Council and the Department for Work and Pensions that she had been working as a security guard since August 2007, earning as much as £240 a day.
Ms Dukes had obtained a total of £17,016.42 in Income Support, Housing & Council Tax Benefit for the period 6th of August 2007 through to the 16th of September 2010, which she wasn’t entitled to and will have to pay this amount back in full.
Ms Dukes pleaded guilty to failing to notify Eastbourne Borough Council and the Department for Work and Pensions of a change in circumstance that affected her right to benefit.
The court heard how Ms Dukes had continued to claim her benefits from the Department for Work and Pensions and Eastbourne Borough Council knowing that she wouldn’t be entitled to these benefits because of her work as a security guard in London and around the country. She even gave a statement to The Department for Work and Pensions during this period of work stating she hadn’t worked for a long while.
On the August 16, 2011 she was sentenced at Eastbourne Magistrates Court to an eight week custodial sentence. On sentencing, the magistrate stated: “This offence is so serious and has caused a large amount of overpaid benefit over a long period of time, which was motivated purely by greed, you have offered no mitigating circumstances leaving me no option but to give you a custodial sentence of eight weeks.”
An Eastbourne Borough Council spokesperson said: “This type of fraud will not be tolerated and should not be seen as a way out of financial difficulty. We are actively pursuing fraudulent claims because fraud affects everyone within this borough and if caught we will seek to prosecute.
“We ask that every person who is claiming benefits tells the benefits office of any changes that may affect their benefit as soon as the change happens.”
If you suspect that someone is claiming benefits that they should not be entitled to, do not hesitate to call the benefit fraud hotline by calling 0800 7317039. the hotline offers the public access to a hotline staffed by investigations officers during office hours and an answering service outside of these hours.
