Benefit fraud: Two people convicted at Craigavon Crown Court for fraud totalling than £100,000
Two people have been convicted at Craigavon Crown Court for claiming benefits totalling more than £100,000 they were not entitled to.
Louise Dawson, aged 38, of Canal Mews, Aghalee, claimed Income Support and Housing Benefit totalling £76,225 whilst failing to declare joint living arrangements.
She was given 18 months imprisonment suspended for two years.
Tyrell Yellowe, aged 35, of Obins Avenue, Portadown, claimed Universal Credit totalling £41,529 whilst failing to declare joint living arrangements.
She was given 16 months imprisonment suspended for two years.
Both are required to repay outstanding money wrongfully obtained to the Department for Communities.
The convictions are the latest in a ‘zero-tolerance approach’ to benefit fraud outlined by Communities minister Gordon Lyons in February.
He also announced the reintroduction of naming those convicted.
“Welfare fraud is not just a financial issue,” he said, “it is a moral one. When individuals cheat the system, they are not stealing from a faceless entity; they are taking from their neighbours, friends, and fellow citizens.