Roguetraders host jailed

ROGUE TRADERS presenter Dan Penteado was jailed for 12 weeks yesterday for council tax and housing benefit fraud worth almost £ 25,000.

The 40-year-old, who chased down bogus workmen with Matt Allwright on the BBC TV show, had previously admitted eight offences of dishonestly or knowingly claiming the benefits while not declaring he earned more than £56,000 from the BBC.

His solicitor Terrence Scanlan told Bournemouth Magistrates’Court he committed the fraud from 2008 to 2012 because he was on a short-term contract with the BBC and made the “very poor judgment not to interrupt the flow of housing benefit”.

Debt-ridden Penteado was only caught when a council housing benefit officer recognised him on RogueTraders and matched the name to his fraudulent application.

Mr Scanlan explained that Penteado first applied for benefit in 2007 when he was a student at Bournemouth University, adding: “In March 2008, the BBC contacted him and invited him to return to the programme he had previously worked on, Rogue Traders.

“Between March 2008 and September 2011 he had a series of short-term contracts. There was no continuous employment — a few days every month.

“It was this uncertainty of work that fed into his decision not to interrupt the flow of housing benefit — that was very poor judgment by him.”

At the previous

hear- ing, the court heard that Pe n t e a d o received £24,077.60 in housing benefit and £868.77 in council tax benefit to which he was not entitled.

A BBC spokesman said Penteado had been axed.

“In light of the prosecution, Dan Penteado will not be returning to Rogue Traders,” he said.

Dan Pentaedo admitted committing fraud.