Ex-HMRC tax official spared jail after fraud
AN HM Revenue and Customs officer who used her knowledge of the system to make fraudulent tax credit claims has been spared prison – for the sake of her children.
Tracey Griffiths spent thousands of pounds on European holidays as she got away with bogus claims totalling £18,147 over a period of two years.
The 36-year-old, from Wordsley, Stourbridge, pleaded not guilty to fraud – but was convicted following a November trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court, as reported in last week’s Post.
At Warwick Crown Court, where the judge who heard the trial is now sitting, she was sentenced to 12 months in jail, suspended for a year, and ordered to do 180 hours of unpaid work.
During the trial the jury heard how Griffiths, who worked at the HMRC offices in Wolverhampton, had applied for tax credit in February, 2014. She made her application on the basis that she and her husband Stewart had separated – but in reality, they were still living together.
Prosecutor Paul Mytton said that over the course of around two years, Griffiths obtained tax credit payments totalling £18,147 to which she was not entitled.
Following her conviction, Judge Peter Cooke adjourned the case for a pre-sentence report.
Ben Williams, prosecuting, said Griffiths had worked for HMRC since 2003, at one stage in the field of tax credits and later as an investigator in the VAT fraud department.
“She was, in her job, in a position of significant trust, although the offending does not arise out of that position,” he said, adding that there was “continued denial of the offence”.
But Luke Ponte, defending, described Griffiths as a hard worker who had gained further employment since being sacked by HMRC and was now working as a furniture company purchasing executive. He said it was two years since she was interviewed about the offence, and that time had “taken its toll”.
Judge Cooke responded: “She’s taking fewer holidays, I imagine.”
Mr Ponte added that Griffiths has three children, two of whom live with her, and her absence “would cause them distress”.