A benefit claimant from Slough is being forced to pay back thousands of pounds he claimed illegally or face jail again.
Mr Dennis Kelly, 52, of Belmont Road, Slough had been claiming housing benefit as a council tenant since April 1997 as well as incapacity benefit.
He claimed he did not have any savings despite having more than £59,000 squirreled away in three Nationwide Building Society accounts.
The savings were discovered following an investigation by Slough Borough Council’s benefits team.
In October 2009, Mr Kelly pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud and was sentenced to four months in prison.
After Mr Kelly was convicted, the Slough council applied for confiscation proceedings – a system where enforcement agencies, like the council, who bring prosecutions can give a convicted person a bill based on how much money they have made from their crime. This is done under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 or the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.
The confiscation hearing was held at Reading Crown Court on 6 August 2010 and Mr Kelly was ordered to pay £93,593.18.
More than £15,626 of that will come direct to the council as compensation.
Mr Kelly was given six months to pay or face a 22 month prison sentence.
Charlie McKenna, head of benefits at Slough Borough Council, said: “Mr Kelly received a large amount of money from the council and was not entitled to have it.
“We are pleased to get this money returned to us so we can use it to help those who genuinely need it.”
Councillor Fiza Matloob, commissioner for Slough economy and skills, said: “Prosecutions like this send a clear message to fraudsters that they will be caught, and the penalties are high.
“It pains me to see people abusing a system which is supposed to be there to help those in real need.
“Every fraud prosecution helps the council target support to those who really need it, and away from criminals whose only aim is to take from the system.”
Slough Borough Council
