A MOTHER-of-one from North Petherton has been jailed after falsely claiming £57,000 benefits.
Lisa Hallett, 30, received six months in prison after a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and Sedgemoor District Council investigation into her benefit claims.
She illegally claimed £28,549 income support and jobseekers' allowance paid by the DWP, and £29,216 Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit from Sedgemoor.
The offender will have to pay this all back.
Sedgemoor's legal services department presented the case in court for both agencies and the offender pleaded guilty.
An anonymous tip-off initially alerted DWP investigators that the offender was living with her partner while still claiming lone parent benefits.
When she was interviewed under caution and confronted by DWP and Sedgemoor evidence, she denied the relationship. But the strength of evidence was considered strong enough to pursue the case.
Just days later, the claimant contacted investigators asking to be interviewed again, stating that she was untruthful.
A thorough investigation was launched into her financial circumstances and several links with her partner suggested the relationship had existed for years. Inquiries revealed, among other things, that the couple enjoyed a holiday in Gran Canaria in 2009.
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