Casualty TV extra who fiddled £70k benefits is jailed
A BENEFITS cheat who claimed he was not fit for work has been jailed after he was spotted appearing as an extra in a TV series.
John Lewis, 65, appeared in a host of top dramas such as Casualty and Sherlock, claiming more than £70,000 in disability allowances after he said knee operations meant he could not work.
But Lewis was spotted “walking or skipping” for the cameras in a scene in Sky TV’s The Cafe, starring Ralf Little.
Idiot
Prosecutor Eugene Egan said: “Lewis claimed he was not fit to work but he worked as an extra in various productions including Sherlock, Torchwood and Casualty.”
In The Cafe “he featured in episodes three and six – there was footage of him walking or skipping across the road”.
Mr Egan added: “He said in an interview that he had behaved like an idiot.”
Lewis obtained £54,597 in disability allowance between November 2006 and May 2015 and £12,991 in income support between February 2007 and November 2012.
He also took £4,408 in pension credit from September 2014 and May 2015.
Lewis, of Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, admitted dishonestly claiming the cash at Cardiff Crown Court this week. John Ryan, mitigating, said: “He accepts he worked as an extra in films. It was not regular employment on a daily basis.
“The money helped a little but there is no suggestion the benefit gave him a lavish lifestyle.”
He added: “There have been times when he is immobile and other times when his mobility is increased.”
He said Lewis was now housebound with his wife, who has been treated for throat and breast cancer.
Mr Ryan told the court that Lewis now cared for his wife and looked after his 14-year-old grandson.
The court heard he had a series of knee operations resulting in him having two knee replacements, that he suffers from arthritis, has problems with his hips and is waiting for a hip replacement.
Mr Ryan said: “He walks with the aid of a stick.
“His incarceration could lead to even more problems for others.”
But Judge Jonathan Furness said the case was too serious and that “an immediate custodial sentence was appropriate”, jailing him for 20 weeks.
He added: “I have to bear in mind the length of time over which the offences were committed.”