Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Three accused of benefits cheating
One man has pleaded guilty while a man and a woman both deny the charges against them.
Richard Anderson, of East Mains in Menstrie, appeared before Sheriff George Way and admitted a charge of falsely obtaining housing benefit from Dundee City Council and employment and support allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), amounting to £18,726.54.
The 52-year-old committed the fraudulent activity at Mary Slessor Square in Dundee and elsewhere unknown, between January 27 2015 and March 5 2017 by failing to notify the council and the DWP that he had started paid employment and continued to claim benefits.
The court heard Anderson had one previous conviction which was not an analogous one. His solicitor said he had been repaying the money at £200 per month since August last year.
Sheriff Way deferred sentence until March 12 for reports and a restriction of liberty assessment and ordained Anderson to appear back in court on that date. Meanwhile, a 63-year-old Broughty Ferry woman has been accused of falsely claiming more than £20,000 i n benefits.
Mary Smith, of Largo Place, denies claiming severe disablement allowance and employment and support allowance to the value of £20,341.27, to which she was not entitled, between December 12 2011 and July 22 2016.
She denies failing to promptly inform the Department for Work and Pensions that she had obtained employment at Dundee City Council and continuing to claim the benefits.
Her trial was fixed for May 10 with an intermediate diet on April 17.
A third person, Tasleem Mohammed, 35, of Arklay Street in Dundee, also denies falsely claiming £10,620.46 in employment and support allowance (income related), while failing to declare to the Department for Work and Pensions that he had returned to full-time education and was in receipt of student income, and obtained the sum to which he was not entitled.
His trial was fixed for May 4 with an intermediate diet on April 12.
THREE people have been accused of falsely claiming benefits amounting to almost £50,000 in separate cases at Dundee Sheriff Court.