The Kennington man was sentenced to two years in custody, suspended for two years, in April 2023, after he was found guilty of Direct Payment fraud against Lambeth.
But the council’s counter-fraud team took further action to recover the money stolen from them through the fraud – and the courts have now ruled that the resident must pay back £82,238.68.
As the fraudster had available assets, the council instigated Proceeds of Crime Act proceedings to recover losses from his assets. Inner London Crown Court found that the offender had retained the funds obtained from the council for personal gain.
On 18 November 2024, he was ordered to pay the council compensation within two months. If he fails to make payment by the deadline, he would have to serve a custodial sentence of 18-months.
Word from the Cabinet
Cllr David Amos, Lambeth’s Cabinet Member for Finance, said: “Local council services are at breaking point following years of government austerity, rising inflation and demand for vital services. This has left us dealing with an £69 million funding gap over the next four years, and we are facing impossible choices as we try to make savings of almost £50 million in the coming year alone.
“So it is vital that we do everything we can to ensure the maximum amount available goes to front-line services for our most vulnerable residents. Our anti-fraud team works hard every day of the year to protect Lambeth and its residents from those who try to cheat the system for financial gain.
“This successful case shows that, where people try to defraud the council, we will do everything we can to track them down – and make sure Lambeth gets back the money they have wrongly claimed.”
