Holiday snaps trap benefits gran, 54, in £41k fraud
A GRANDMOTHER who fiddled more than £41,000 in benefits and splashed out on luxury trips has been trapped by her holiday photographs.
Geraldine Thomas, 54, spent the money on all-inclusive breaks to Egypt – after lying that she lived alone.
But Thomas was secretly living with her partner Raymond Adams, who accompanied her on the trips abroad.
The Department of Work and Pensions launched an investigation and found the couple’s happy holiday snaps posted online.
A court heard that Thomas pocketed £41,350 by wrongly claiming income support, employment support, housing benefit and council tax over five years.
Thomas admitted three counts of benefit fraud at Newport Crown Court.
Recorder Patrick Harrington QC told her: ‘I know what the money has been spent on. It was spent on an expensive holiday, wasn’t it?
‘You were not the instigator of this but you continued the relationship and you continued claiming the money for a very long time.
‘Benefit fraud is rife and costs honest hard-working people a lot of money. You committed offences which aggregated more than £41,000.
‘That is a great deal of money and it is your fault that you have found yourself in this position now.’ Thomas was given a 12-month suspended sentence and told she would face a proceeds of crime hearing to recover the money.
Donna James, senior fraud leader at the DWP, said officials were trying to regain the money. She added: ‘This is a blatant act of fraud.
‘As a department we are taking action to retrieve over-payments but also any assets amassed while the offences that have been committed were going on.’