Benefit fraud investigator jailed over wife's handouts » Bill Payments » 24dash.com

A benefit fraud investigator from north-west London was jailed for 27 months after helping his wife pocket £31,000 in state handouts.

Mohammed Aslam, 37, abused his knowledge of the system so she could make a string of claims posing as a hard-up single parent with as little as £20 in the bank.

But London's Harrow Crown Court heard that in reality they were living together, and besides working as a teacher she was also receiving the rent from one of their properties.

Andrew Evans, prosecuting, said when Afshan Ishaq, also 37, first fell under suspicion the trusted Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) investigator dissuaded her from attending an interview with one of his colleagues.

Despite having wed the previous year according to Islamic tradition, he pretended the mother-of-two was a stranger so he could "hijack and corrupt the investigation" by "artificially" interviewing her himself, and then halt the inquiry. That allowed her to illegally claim further benefits.

Aslam, of Baffingham Way, Wembley, and Ishaq, who according to court records now lives separately in nearby Barn Way, originally denied any wrongdoing.

But a month into their trial, and while one of them was still in the witness box, further developments resulted in the pair changing some of their pleas.

Ishaq admitted three deception counts involving housing and council tax benefits as well as income support. Aslam pleaded guilty to wilful misconduct in public office, money laundering, and three counts of perverting the course of justice. All the offences were committed between April 18, 2004 and July 2, 2008.

The judge said that in addition to jail, he would have to pay a £31,477 confiscation order or face a further year behind bars, and contribute £10,000 towards prosecution costs.

Dealing with Ishaq, the judge said he could suspend the six month prison sentence he was imposing because, amongst other things, she had two children and it was clear her co-defendant  "instigated" the fraud. But she would also have to pay £500 towards prosecution costs and carry out 100 hours unpaid work.