Jailed, £70k benefits cheat who worked as BBC extra in Sherlock and Casualty
A TV extra who claimed he was too disabled to work is behind bars after he was spotted ‘skipping across the road’ in a sitcom.
Actor John Lewis, 65, fiddled more than £70,000 in benefits while working on BBC shows such as Sherlock and Casualty.
But he was caught when he appeared on a television show ‘walking or skipping’ across the road for the cameras.
Prosecutor Eugene Egan told Cardiff Crown Court Lewis admitted he had ‘behaved like an idiot’.
He said: ‘He claimed he was not fit to work but he worked as an extra in various productions including Sherlock, Torchwood and Casualty.
‘He was also in a show made for Sky TV called The Cafe, directed by Craig Cash and written by Ralf Little. He featured in episodes three and six. There was footage of him walking or skipping across the road.’
Lewis, of Barry, South Wales, admitted dishonestly claiming the benefits money over more than eight years.
The court heard he pocketed £54,597.35 in disability allowance between November 2006 and May 2015 and £12,991.12 in income support between February 2007 and November 2012. He also took £4,408.20 in pension credit from September 2014 and May 2015. In mitigation, John Ryan said his client worked as an extra in films, but it was ‘not regular employment on a daily basis’. He said the main reason he began working was ‘to get out of the house’ and feel he was ‘doing something of value’.
‘The money helped a little, but there is no suggestion the benefit gave him a lavish lifestyle,’ said Mr Ryan .‘There have been times when he is immobile and other times when his mobility is increased.’
The barrister said Lewis now needed a stick to walk and was housebound with his wife, who has been treated for throat and breast cancer. He said his client also suffered from arthritis, had had two knee replacements, and was now waiting for a hip replacement.
Mr Ryan told the court Lewis cared for his wife and his 14-yearold grandson, adding: ‘He has a low risk of reoffending.
‘His principal concern is how his wife will cope without him and the effect it will have on his grandson.
‘His incarceration could lead to even more problems for others.’
But Judge Jonathan Furness decided the case was too serious to avoid a jail sentence and sentenced Lewis to 20 weeks behind bars.
He said: ‘Over eight and a half years in respect of disability living allowance, and lesser periods in respect of income support and pension credit, you received a total of just under £ 72,000, which you should not have had or not have had all of it. I’ve to bear in mind the length of time over which the offences were committed.
‘I’ve listened to everything said on your behalf. I’ve read the presentence report and I have regard to your age, health and status as a carer, both to your wife and grandson.’
But the judge said that only ‘an immediate custodial sentence was appropriate’.
The Cafe, which was filmed in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, first aired in 2011 and ran for two series before it was cancelled in 2013.