Man admits £37,000 benefit fraud

Craigavon Crown Court Judge Patrick Lynch QC said while the offences committed by Terry McCune crossed the custody threshold, given mitigating factors such a his medical difficulties, guilty plea and repayment plan, he would suspend the 12 month jail sentence for three years.

He told 63-year-old McCune, who appeared at court by videolink from his own home in Russell Drive, Lurgan: “You are getting a chance - please don’t get into this sort of activity again” or he would face gonna to jail.

At an earlier hearing McCune, entered guilty pleas to each of the three charges of benefit fraud in that between 1 October 2012 and 7 January 2018, he fraudulently claimed Housing Benefit and Employment and Support Allowance by not disclosing that he was living with his partner who was “in remunerative work.”

Prosecuting lawyer Joseph Murphy said McCune benefits claims began as legitimate but he failed to tell the authorities when his wife began living with him.

He fraudulently claimed £37,458 and he has repaid just over £3k. McCune has been repaying £105 per month. It will take 27 years to repay the remaining amount by which stage he will be 90-years-old.

Defence counsel Colm Fegan said “it’s a considerable amount of money which were public funds

He McCune had numerous health problems and he was “medically retired” eight years ago. The father and grandfather McCune has “recently had a leg amputated” due to gangrene.

Judge Lynch said the theft, of £37k from the public revenue is ‘a very serious matter’.

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