Cheating Birmingham postman exposed as benefits cheat

[TrueBlueTerrier]

http://www.sundaymercury.net/news/crime ... -25377759/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A BIRMINGHAM postman has been exposed as a scheming benefit cheat after claiming he couldn’t leave his house without the aid of crutches.

Amran Abu, 29, from Handsworth, claimed incapacity benefit and disability allowance worth £8,000 on the basis that he was unable to work, and had no other source of income.

He claimed that he was unsteady on his feet, unable to stand for long periods of time, easily fell over and was only able to walk a distance of 200m in 30 minutes with the use of crutches or a walking frame.

But CCTV footage of him working an arduous shift at Royal Mail’s Birmingham Mail Centre exposed his claims as a complete sham.

Instead of being virtually housebound, an investigation by Department for Work and Pensions fraud investigators found that Abu was actually working at the Birmingham offices.

Video footage obtained by the investigation team showed Abu walking long distances across the centre, standing talking to colleagues, stretching and picking items off the floor without any discomfort.

Abu was sentenced last week at Birmingham Magistrates Court to an 18-month community order, to include 200 hours unpaid work and £120 costs.

He will also have to pay back all the money he defrauded.

Department for Work and Pensions fraud investigator Sian Fellowes said: “We are closing in on those guilty of stealing money intended for the most vulnerable in society.

“They can expect no sympathy from the public, from the courts or from our investigators.

“As this gentleman has found, our investigators are equipped with a wide range of powers and techniques to track you down.”

Abu is just the latest benefit cheat highlighted by the Sunday Mercury. Earlier this year we exposed John McPhee, 44, who claimed he could barely walk because of a bad back yet was filmed by undercover surveillance officers playing 18 holes of golf at Lichfield Golf & Country Club.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Didn't the idiot notice all the Security Cameras at work

[pologolfmasala]

Didn't the idiot notice all the Security Cameras at work

Media have a problem with over exaggerating stories, I can clearly tell this guy definately has a limp, therefore he must have had a leg problem earlier on in life, and reported it to get his benefits, from when he was out of work. This was clearly a case that he didn't update the state of his condition.

[Scarlet Pimpernell]

It's just as well he didn't. They may never have caught him, without the CCTV footage.