‘Too weak to walk’ benefit cheat climbed Kilimanjaro
THE photo of former paratrooper Mark Lloyd climbing to the summit of Africa’s highest mountain must have come as a surprise to benefits officials.
At the time he was claiming taxpayers’ help saying he was too weak to walk more than 50 yards without suffering agony.
“Action Man Mark”, as the Welshman became known, pocketed £7,000 in disability handouts on the grounds he had a slipped disc which left him in “excruciating pain”, a court heard.
He then used the money to fund gruelling action-packed adventures around the world.
Besides his ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro, Lloyd, 33, ran and won two triathlons, completed a marathon canoe race, skied in the Alps and went wing-walking.
Merthyr Tydfil magistrates court was shown photos of Lloyd running in the HSBC triathlon in September 2015.
In the same month, he was pictured with an African guide during a five-day trek to the summit of 19,000ft Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
Agony
He took part in the World Powerboat Championships in Malta with Team Endeavour Racing, a group for military veterans. He also completed a 125-mile canoe race from Devon to Westminster.
And during a ski trip to La Plagne in the French Alps he was given two awards, including one for “best skier” in the Phoenix Winter Games for ex-servicemen.
Chris Evans, prosecuting, said: “You’d be forgiven for thinking this was two different people from hearing about his condition and how it affected his day-to-day life, and then hearing about the type of activities he was undertaking.
“He set out in his claim forms he needs a walking aid and on a bad day he can’t bend and reach his knees.
“He said he can only walk between 20 and 50 yards, can’t walk on uneven ground, suffers pain when walking.”
Lloyd, of Pontypridd, South Wales, was found guilty of fraud this week and will be sentenced in August.
The court heard he was medically discharged from the Army in 2011 after injuring his lower back while serving in Afghanistan and began claiming benefits in 2014, seeking more money a year later.
James Harris, defending, said Lloyd had not been dishonest.
“He has the ability to push himself through pain. He is an exserviceman,” he said.
“When climbing Mount Kilimanjaro he said he pushed himself and was in agony. But he did it anyway because his choices were either to sit in the house and let his mental health get the better of him or get out and get on with his life.” But District Judge Martin Brown called Lloyd’s defence “nonsense”, saying he had deliberately lied to get “every penny he could”. He added: “He blatantly lied about the severity of his condition.”
After the hearing, Laura Walters, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Mark Lloyd flouted the system to claim thousands of pounds. But he could not hide from the overwhelming evidence, including photographs of his participation in a climb of Mount Kilimanjaro.”