8:45am Saturday 15th March 2008
By Janaki Mahadevan
A Shenley woman has been convicted of benefit fraud totalling more than £90,000.
Delphine Ighile was given a 24-month Community Rehabilitation Order after making £90,375 from false benefit claims after failing to declare that she owned four houses which she was renting out and that she had eight bank accounts.Ighile, of Newcombe Road, had been claiming income support and housing benefit since 1999 on the grounds that she was a single parent with three children, Harrow Crown Court was told on Wednesday.But a civil action taken to evict Ighile from one of her properties led the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to investigate her claim.During this it was discovered that she had properties in Edgware, Edmonton, Harrow and Ilford. Investigators also discovered the undeclared bank accounts containing large amounts of money.Ighile admitted ten charges involving making false declarations on her income support and housing benefit claim forms.James Plaskitt, DWP anti-fraud minister, said: "Benefit cheats take money intended for the most vulnerable in our society. "The cheats should be warned. We are now saying no ifs, no buts."All benefit theft is a crime and those found breaking the law face a criminal record. If anyone suspects a fraud, call the National Benefit Fraud Hotline on 0800 854 440."
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