Spiritual guru Parmjit Singh told his followers he believed in the healing powers of alternative medicine, but the Southall “priest” used some of the £40,000 he stole from false benefit claims to fund a private healthcare scheme.

Last week at Isleworth Crown Court, Singh was given a bitter pill to swallow when a judge sent him to prison for two years.

Councillor Gerald McGregor, lead member for finance at the London Borough of Hounslow, said: “Claiming benefits you are not entitled too is a very serious crime, and that severity has been illustrated by this sentence.

“Mr Singh disgracefully weaved a web of lies and deceit to claim monies from the taxpayer, money that would have been better used funding front-line services. In addition, this man has shown absolutely no remorse or regret for his crime.

“I would like to thank the court for ensuring that justice is served, and to particularly thank our fraud investigation unit for their diligence and professionalism in providing the evidence that led to his conviction.”

Singh, 41, claimed Housing Benefit from November 1995 to November 2004.

Singh falsely claimed he was a tenant on Wentworth Road in Southall, and supplied documents to the council allegedly signed by a landlord. This said he would be paying rent of £670 a month.

Since his family had a low income, housing benefit was paid to help him with their housing costs.

However, later inquiries revealed that his landlord was a member of Singh’s own family, which had not been declared on his claim form. This meant this claim was false, and illegal.

While Singh was claiming benefit, he provided letters and other documents allegedly from his landlord backing up his right to continue claiming, but in court during his trial in February 2008, two different landlords denied completing or signing these documents.

Both landlords said they did not receive any money from Singh as rent and were unaware that he was claiming benefit for their addresses.

Singh also claimed to one landlord that he had spent nearly £100,000 improving his home, and those improvements had been funded from the contributions of his followers.

However, this was during the period when he was claiming benefits, and it’s suspected the illegal payments were used to fund this work.

Singh used some of the £40,000 he stole from false benefit claims to fund a private healthcare scheme and a gym membership.

Singh was prosecuted for falsely claiming £46,002 in Housing Benefit. He was found guilty by the jury on all 18 counts at his trial in February 2008.

If you or someone known to you has been the recipient of a false claim for benefit then get in touch with the council. It could save more serious consequences for those concerned at a later date.