Benefit fraud son failed to reveal mum’s £40k when making claims

Warning for man who illegally collected £12,000

A son who illegally claimed £12,000 worth of benefits for his mother has been shown mercy by a sheriff.

Stewart Connelly, 56, collected the money from Department of Work and Pensions bosses after telling officials his mum only had £6,000 in the bank.

However, Connelly – who had been granted power of attorney over his mother’s affairs – concealed her other six bank accounts, containing almost £40,000 in savings.

He appeared for sentencing at Paisley Sheriff Court after admitting obtaining the cash unlawfully for his mother Amelia, who passed away in August, between June 2015 and February this year.

The court had requested background reports into the circumstances surrounding the offence, which had been passed to the sheriff.

The dodgy claim was uncovered after the Department of Work and Pensions received a tip- off that Amelia had more cash.

Prosecutor Pamela Flynn said: “There was a referral to the DWP alleging his mother had savings.

“Thereafter, they made enquiries with Halifax Bank of Scotland and found seven accounts with them, with a total of £43,000 within.”

Defence agent Marcus Tolland told the court that Connelly of Simons Crescent, Renfrew, had repaid all of the cash, and the matter had arisen because he hadn’t “made proper investigations” into his mother’s finances.

He added this led to inaccurate information being submitted to the authorities about her savings.

He said: “The money has been repaid in full.

“He is on a limited income of £ 1,000 a month after his car payments and would be in a position to pay a fine or perform unpaid work.

“He accepted responsibility for the crime by pleading guilty at the earliest opportunity.”

Sheriff Seith Ireland said: “This crime was committed over a lack of attention to detail rather than some deliberate attempt to overcome the processes to obtain money.

“It’s a fine line but one which you have inadvertently crossed.

“This is a serious matter when public money is obtained irregularly.

“I will impose 105 hours of unpaid work to be completed within six months.”

The sheriff added if Connelly doesn’t carry out the work, he could be sent to prison.

This is a serious matter when public money is obtained irregularly