Woman convicted of benefit fraud

A Rochdale woman has been given a 12 month conditional discharge after claiming more than £1500 in Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit that she wasn’t entitled to.

Lynn-Marie Fawcett, 49, of Beal Crescent, did not attend three interview appointments between January 2007 and March 2007 to answer allegations that she had not declared she had started work in October 2006 while continuing to claim benefits.

Fawcett failed to turn up at Rochdale Magistrates Court in November 2007 and was found guilty in her absence.

She also failed to attend court to be sentenced so a warrant was issued for her arrest.

She absconded but was subsequently arrested and brought before magistrates last week. The chair of the bench informed Fawcett that had she contacted the council she would not be in this predicament.

Fawcett will still have to repay the £1766.23 that she fraudulently received.

Councillor Greg Couzens, cabinet member for finance on Rochdale Council, said: “We’re working hard to catch benefit cheats and see that they are prosecuted. Some people clearly think that if they don’t turn up for an arranged interview we’ll drop the matter – we won’t. It’s important that people who are flouting the law are brought to justice and held to account for what they’ve done.”