0:00:02 > 0:00:06What makes this country great is that we give money to people who genuinely need it.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10The problem is that wherever there's money, there are people who want to steal it.
0:00:10 > 0:00:14Welcome to the world of Saints and Scroungers!
0:00:36 > 0:00:39Saints and Scroungers is about busting the benefit thieves
0:00:39 > 0:00:43who steal millions every year from you and me - the taxpayer.
0:00:43 > 0:00:49Thankfully, all over the country, crack fraud investigators are pulling out all the stops
0:00:49 > 0:00:53to track down cheats and put an end to their scams.
0:00:54 > 0:00:56Coming up on today's programme...
0:00:56 > 0:00:59We're going to show you how an old lady got busted
0:00:59 > 0:01:03for a housing benefit scam that lasted for more than 20 years!
0:01:06 > 0:01:11It's just not the behaviour you expect from 81-year-olds.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14From the scroungers ripping off the system,
0:01:14 > 0:01:16to the saints who deserve every penny.
0:01:16 > 0:01:19We meet Jim Swift, who was desperate for help
0:01:19 > 0:01:22when his wife was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26The biggest fear was that I wouldn't be able to afford
0:01:26 > 0:01:32to pay the bills if I couldn't manage to care for my wife at home.
0:01:32 > 0:01:37First today, the story of one old lady and her 20-year scam.
0:01:39 > 0:01:41Ah, retirement.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44After more than four decades of hard graft,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47it's time to start enjoying your golden years.
0:01:47 > 0:01:54Relax, put your feet up, take it easy, enjoy the finer things in life. Thank you...
0:01:54 > 0:01:56But what if that wasn't enough?
0:01:56 > 0:01:58What if you wanted more?
0:01:58 > 0:02:00How far would you go to get it?
0:02:01 > 0:02:04Meet 81-year-old Ellen Lynch.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08She may look like a sweet old lady, but don't be fooled!
0:02:08 > 0:02:14She's spent more than two decades lying to different councils, while claiming £70,000 in benefits.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20She's been living out her golden years in a £700,000 property in Tunbridge Wells,
0:02:20 > 0:02:25while you and me pay for her two-bed weekend pad in Central London!
0:02:25 > 0:02:31Fraud officers believe that, despite the innocent facade, Lynch is a calculating fraudster.
0:02:34 > 0:02:39She sounded like you'd expect an 81-year-old to sound.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43A...a nice elderly lady.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Um...maybe I'll be looking at elderly people in a different light from now on.
0:02:51 > 0:02:57It's July 2007, and 81-year-old Lynch is out for a walk
0:02:57 > 0:02:58near her Lambeth flat.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02She's recognized in the community, but rarely given a second glance.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06I seen her walking along the street.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10She looks really lonely, when she's coming back from shopping.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12But that's...
0:03:12 > 0:03:14that's how she always looked.
0:03:16 > 0:03:22She just looks like an ordinary, old-ish lady, you know?
0:03:23 > 0:03:27An ordinary lady who could be missing out on Government cash.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29Lynch has been claiming Housing Benefit
0:03:29 > 0:03:35and Council Tax Benefit on her Lambeth flat since 1984,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38but for some reason she wasn't receiving her state pension,
0:03:38 > 0:03:42something that most people of retirement age are entitled to.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47It is unusual for someone of Ellen Lynch's age not to have a pension,
0:03:47 > 0:03:50and one of the things we wanted to make sure
0:03:50 > 0:03:54was that she was getting all the money and help she was entitled to.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58So the council, believing they were going to help
0:03:58 > 0:04:02a sweet old lady in need, paid Ellen Lynch a visit.
0:04:02 > 0:04:07'Initially, we went along that this was an elderly lady,'
0:04:07 > 0:04:09and a mistake had been made on her claim.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12In order to get her signed up for state pension,
0:04:12 > 0:04:15they simply needed to get some identification.
0:04:15 > 0:04:20'To verify all this, we'd be looking for things like birth certificates'
0:04:20 > 0:04:23marriage certificates, passports, that type of thing.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26Lynch doesn't have any ID in the house
0:04:26 > 0:04:28and claims not to know where she was born,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31brought up, or even whether she has brothers or sisters!
0:04:32 > 0:04:37'The investigators certainly had the impression that this wasn't'
0:04:37 > 0:04:40an innocent, confused, elderly lady.
0:04:40 > 0:04:46'She answered the questions, knew why the questions were being asked,'
0:04:46 > 0:04:49just didn't answer truthfully.
0:04:49 > 0:04:54'I don't think the investigator totally believed her.'
0:04:55 > 0:05:00The suspicious answers are like a red rag to a bull for the Lambeth fraud team
0:05:00 > 0:05:02and they decide to dig deeper.
0:05:03 > 0:05:11Entering Mrs Lynch's details into the Land Registry throws out a surprising result.
0:05:11 > 0:05:17There was an Ellen Lynch of a similar date of birth claiming benefits in Tunbridge Wells.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Tunbridge Wells? The epitome of middle England?
0:05:22 > 0:05:27The place regularly voted one of the best places in the country to live?
0:05:27 > 0:05:32What could a lady living in social housing in Lambeth have to do with Tunbridge Wells?
0:05:32 > 0:05:34Kathy contacts Richard Powell,
0:05:34 > 0:05:38her benefits team counterpart in the area, to make sure
0:05:38 > 0:05:41that Lambeth's Ellen Lynch is the same person.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45We were able to advise Lambeth that we were certainly dealing with the same individual.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48And that was based on the physical description of the lady,
0:05:48 > 0:05:52and also on confirmation of her signature on various documents
0:05:52 > 0:05:55that had been exchanged between the two authorities.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58And that isn't the last surprising bit of news.
0:05:58 > 0:06:06The Ellen Lynch in Tunbridge Wells was claiming council tax benefit for a four-bedroom property in the area.
0:06:06 > 0:06:13That's council tax benefit currently worth over £1,600 a year on a £700,000 house!
0:06:13 > 0:06:18Richard and his team really are disgusted - and with good reason.
0:06:18 > 0:06:25We as officers had a clear suspicion that we were dealing with the same Ellen Lynch in both circumstances,
0:06:25 > 0:06:32claiming housing benefit in London and Council Tax Benefit on a separate property,
0:06:32 > 0:06:35not declared one to the other, here in Tunbridge Wells.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39So the picture is finally clear.
0:06:39 > 0:06:45Ellen Lynch spends most of the week in her £700,000 house in Tunbridge Wells,
0:06:45 > 0:06:50but when she fancies a trip into town, she jumps on the train
0:06:50 > 0:06:51and stays at her London flat!
0:06:51 > 0:06:56Her scam is the fact that she's not told either Lambeth
0:06:56 > 0:06:59or Tunbridge Wells council about the other property
0:06:59 > 0:07:03and fraudulently claims benefits on both, totalling nearly 70,000.
0:07:04 > 0:07:11It's just not the behaviour you expect from 81-year-olds.
0:07:15 > 0:07:21Later in the show, we find out what happens when investigators bring Ellen Lynch in for questioning.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38Next, it's goodbye to the benefits scroungers
0:07:38 > 0:07:41and hello to the people who actually deserve Government help.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Some people don't claim because they don't know they're entitled to something,
0:07:45 > 0:07:51but it's some people's mission to shine a light on the cash available for those genuinely in need!
0:07:51 > 0:07:54We call them the Saints.
0:07:56 > 0:08:02A blissful marriage, two wonderful daughters, 30 years in the job he loved.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Jim Swift was really looking forward to his retirement.
0:08:05 > 0:08:07But life had other plans.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14Jim and Jan Swift live together at home in Bolton.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18But in 2002, Jan was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease,
0:08:18 > 0:08:23an event that, within just a few years, would leave Jim at rock bottom.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29I've come to meet Jim to find out more.
0:08:29 > 0:08:30How did you two meet?
0:08:30 > 0:08:34We met at the first school I started teaching at.
0:08:34 > 0:08:39Jan was already there, it took me a couple of months to get to know her and we started going out.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42- Our first date we travelled some 242 miles.- Wow!
0:08:42 > 0:08:45- That was our first date. - Where did you go?
0:08:45 > 0:08:48We went to Trentham Gardens, Alton Towers
0:08:48 > 0:08:53and on the way home, Jan said, "I wouldn't mind having fish and chips on the seafront in Blackpool."
0:08:53 > 0:08:55So, that's where we went.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59The couple were married in the summer of 1969
0:08:59 > 0:09:02and settled into a happy life living and working together.
0:09:02 > 0:09:09The pair had two daughters, Helen and Claire. Things couldn't be better.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17Until Jan became ill six years ago, we had an idyllic life.
0:09:17 > 0:09:18Things were pretty rosy.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22But Jim and Jan weren't going to have
0:09:22 > 0:09:24the happy retirement they had dreamt of.
0:09:24 > 0:09:26- CHURCH BELLS PEAL - Noisy, isn't it?
0:09:26 > 0:09:27Things were great,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30heading to retirement, looking forward to that.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34- In 1996, we went on holiday to Italy. - Right.
0:09:34 > 0:09:39It was on the holiday in Italy that I first noticed something wrong.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43We'd had a fantastic day in Venice.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46The following evening, we went out for meal.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48Jan suddenly said, "Where did we go yesterday?"
0:09:48 > 0:09:52That sounds silly, but even in those early stages
0:09:52 > 0:09:53I knew something was wrong,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56because of the utter fear in her eyes.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59She really couldn't remember this fantastic day we'd had.
0:09:59 > 0:10:05But we got back to England, things seemed pretty much the same and so I put it to the back of my mind.
0:10:06 > 0:10:11But over the next couple of years, Jan gradually became more and more forgetful.
0:10:11 > 0:10:19Jan stopped paying bills. I would open the cupboards and find 12 tins of tuna,
0:10:19 > 0:10:24because Jan couldn't remember if we needed any tuna and kept on buying it.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26So there were indicators like that
0:10:26 > 0:10:31which led me to go to the doctor and he referred me to a psychiatrist.
0:10:32 > 0:10:34The psychiatrist sent Jan for a scan.
0:10:34 > 0:10:40When the brain scan came back and I was told she had a perfectly normal brain,
0:10:40 > 0:10:43I told Jan what had been going on.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48Her reply was that she was glad that I hadn't told her
0:10:48 > 0:10:51because she wouldn't have wanted to know the worst.
0:10:51 > 0:10:56But by 2002, it was clear to Jim
0:10:56 > 0:10:59that he could no longer ignore the symptoms.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01Things didn't get any better
0:11:01 > 0:11:05and so she was sent for a further brain scan in Manchester.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09The results of that showed that she did in fact have Alzheimer's,
0:11:09 > 0:11:15and because she had indicated she didn't want to know the worst,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18then since that time I haven't told her,
0:11:18 > 0:11:23so to this day, she's not aware that she has dementia.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28- That's your family, isn't it, yes? Your sister.- I don't know.- Deborah.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31Oh, Deborah! Of course, of course.
0:11:33 > 0:11:39Today, even some of the most significant moments of their lives have disappeared from her memory.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42What's that?
0:11:44 > 0:11:46- What's this?- You tell it.
0:11:46 > 0:11:47SHE LAUGHS
0:11:47 > 0:11:49That's you and I on our wedding day.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52Over the years, things disappeared,
0:11:52 > 0:11:58such as being able to write her own name, being able to deal with money.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03She is no longer aware of where the toilet is.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07She will ask, "Where's the toilet? Where's the bedroom?"
0:12:07 > 0:12:11Which means, although she spent
0:12:11 > 0:12:15a lot of her teaching career teaching nursery and infant children,
0:12:15 > 0:12:18her mental capacity is now less than theirs.
0:12:18 > 0:12:24Jim had to retire early, leaving him with a seriously depleted pension
0:12:24 > 0:12:27and he spent nearly all his savings caring for Jan,
0:12:27 > 0:12:32making adaptations to the house and making her life as good as possible.
0:12:33 > 0:12:38Financially, things were starting to get a bit worrying.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40I was going through my savings,
0:12:40 > 0:12:46and also I didn't realise how I was being affected.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48- Clean your teeth?- Me?- Yeah.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53Jim really wants to care for Jan at home,
0:12:53 > 0:12:58so he converted the garage into a downstairs bedroom with walk-in shower.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06But as she got worse, Jim was terrified he'd made the wrong decision.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11The biggest fear was that I wouldn't be able to afford
0:13:11 > 0:13:16to pay the bills, if I couldn't manage to care for my wife at home.
0:13:22 > 0:13:26Having coped for years on his own, Jim was emotionally and financially drained.
0:13:26 > 0:13:31He was determined never to abandon Jan, but his biggest fear was that
0:13:31 > 0:13:33he wouldn't have the means to fulfil his promise.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39But his life is about to change for the better.
0:13:39 > 0:13:45Through his local hospital, he is put in contact with Paula Smith, an Admiral Nurse.
0:13:45 > 0:13:51Admiral Nurses are specialist nurses who work with the carers of people with dementia,
0:13:51 > 0:13:56and Paula knows just how tough it can be caring for someone with Alzheimer's.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59- Hi, Paula.- Hi, Jim.- Do you want to come in?- Thanks very much.
0:13:59 > 0:14:04He was referred to us as he was finding it difficult coming to terms with Jan's diagnosis
0:14:04 > 0:14:07and the changes that he was seeing in her.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10How have things been going since I last saw you?
0:14:10 > 0:14:14Having found someone who fully understands what he is going through
0:14:14 > 0:14:17means Jim no longer has to cope on his own.
0:14:17 > 0:14:22Providing 24-hour care for somebody with Alzheimer's is really difficult
0:14:22 > 0:14:26because you literally provide 24-hour care with no break.
0:14:27 > 0:14:34Jim is a very devoted husband, he wants to enhance Jan's quality of life.
0:14:34 > 0:14:39He's made a conscious decision that he wants to provide the care for Jan
0:14:39 > 0:14:43within their own home for as long as he is physically able.
0:14:43 > 0:14:48Reluctant at first to admit that he couldn't just soldier on, Paula helps Jim to understand
0:14:48 > 0:14:52that his health is every bit as vital as Jan's.
0:14:52 > 0:14:55It's important to support carers of people with Alzheimer's,
0:14:55 > 0:15:00because the carer is best placed to provide the level of support
0:15:00 > 0:15:02that the person with the diagnosis needs.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05- That's your first one - one more coming up.- Ooh!
0:15:05 > 0:15:12Paula gives me the chance to let off steam and to talk to someone about Jan's condition.
0:15:12 > 0:15:19To talk to someone who's visited patients with the same sort of behaviour makes it easier to talk.
0:15:19 > 0:15:23- Conversation can be great healer for a lot of things, can't it? - It can, yes.
0:15:23 > 0:15:28Sometimes things that she does really frustrate you,
0:15:28 > 0:15:31and then the guilt kicks in and you get annoyed
0:15:31 > 0:15:35and then you're guilty, because you know that your wife isn't doing it deliberately.
0:15:35 > 0:15:40For instance, she will go to the toilet and have reams of toilet paper in her pocket.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44She'll wander round with a cushion in her hand, she follows me everywhere.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48It can be frustrating, with the best will in the world.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51But Paula has done more that just listen.
0:15:51 > 0:15:56She tells Jim that he could claim benefits that would help him look after Jan at home.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00We looked at what benefits he was in receipt of
0:16:00 > 0:16:05and we then looked at what his entitlement was and what Jan's entitlement was.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08We consequently applied for those benefits.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12What sort of care and allowances did they advise you to get?
0:16:12 > 0:16:18The Carer's Allowance, for myself, and the Disability Living Allowance for Jan,
0:16:18 > 0:16:22which is comprised of two components - care and mobility.
0:16:22 > 0:16:27Give me an idea of how much money that gives you a month and what that enables you to do.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30Altogether, I get several hundred pounds a month.
0:16:30 > 0:16:34With that money I'm able to pay for carers
0:16:34 > 0:16:38to come in and look after Jan, I'm able to pay for her respite care.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Thanks to Paula's support and the various benefits,
0:16:42 > 0:16:47Jim now gets a break two days a week when Jan goes to respite care.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51- What is respite?- Respite gives me a chance to recharge my batteries.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53I'm exhausted most of the time.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56Originally, I thought because I was younger
0:16:56 > 0:17:00that I'd be stronger and more able to cope, but you aren't.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03This is a disease that would wear down an Olympic athlete,
0:17:03 > 0:17:08because it's looking after two people now, 24 hours a day.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12So respite gives me a chance to do something for myself.
0:17:15 > 0:17:20Jim now has the chance to get away from things, if only for a short time.
0:17:20 > 0:17:25He loves nothing more than taking a stroll out into the hills near his home,
0:17:25 > 0:17:27something that without respite care he was unable to do.
0:17:29 > 0:17:33Jan is the love of my life, but I do need,
0:17:33 > 0:17:38for my benefit, and for Jan's, to come out here,
0:17:38 > 0:17:40to get away from the situation, to enjoy the scenery,
0:17:40 > 0:17:46because I cannot do the job 24/7 and keep my sanity, without a break.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51You can forget, albeit temporarily, the problems you have.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55And for a short while, I suppose you could say I'm at peace,
0:17:55 > 0:17:58away from the dreadful situation that my wife is in.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06When I first sent her into respite, I felt as if I'd betrayed her, abandoned her
0:18:06 > 0:18:11because I was sending her into an environment where she could well be unhappy.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17But I do realise now it's vital for carers to have breaks.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22How are things now, six years down the line?
0:18:22 > 0:18:28Jan recently has entered what I think is the last stage, she's started to get aggressive.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32She tells me I'm stupid, nasty, horrible,
0:18:32 > 0:18:37which is difficult to take, but I realise it's not the real Jan.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41I'm now living with somebody who used to be my wife, but is fast disappearing.
0:18:45 > 0:18:51This is a disease that strips away every vestige of humanity bit by bit.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55Lots of people have difficulties in their life, what would you say to do?
0:18:55 > 0:18:59There are benefits out there, I feel some should be increased.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02But in the first instance, you are at loss.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04You don't know who to turn to, who to speak to.
0:19:04 > 0:19:10Perhaps the Citizens Advice Bureau or the Admiral Nurse Service that cares for people with dementia.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13But they are there to help you and you really will need that.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16For the future, Jim, what's your hopes?
0:19:16 > 0:19:23I have long ago given up hope that there will be a cure for Alzheimer's.
0:19:23 > 0:19:27So my intention is to keep Jan at home as long as possible,
0:19:27 > 0:19:31in fact, right through her illness if I'm strong enough to do so.
0:19:31 > 0:19:37To send Jan away, even if I visited her every day, would seem like abandoning her.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41I know Jan is being taken care of today, this is your day of rest and recuperation,
0:19:41 > 0:19:47- so I want to say thanks for me tea and I'm going to love you and leave you. Take care.- Bye.
0:19:51 > 0:19:56I am so pleased that Jim is now getting help he needs, which allows him
0:19:56 > 0:20:00to take care of wife and ensures he can take a well-earned break.
0:20:03 > 0:20:10Jan means everything to me. If I can make her happy as possible, then I will have done my job.
0:20:18 > 0:20:24Since 1984, Ellen Lynch has been living in a housing association flat in Lambeth
0:20:24 > 0:20:29and claiming housing benefit and council tax on that property
0:20:29 > 0:20:36while at the same time claiming further benefits on her four bedroom house in Tunbridge Wells.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41It's a double scam - ripping off two councils.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46Alex Wrigley runs a housing association scheme
0:20:46 > 0:20:49providing a vital service for the locals.
0:20:49 > 0:20:52It can be frustrating when dealing with abuses of social housing,
0:20:52 > 0:20:58not only for me as a social landlord trying to put people in the right properties,
0:20:58 > 0:21:00but especially for people on the waiting list
0:21:00 > 0:21:04who have been waiting for years for the right property to become available.
0:21:06 > 0:21:10On this estate, we have 270 properties and very rarely do they become free.
0:21:10 > 0:21:16And with waiting times up to a year, when they do become free the competition is staggering.
0:21:16 > 0:21:2275% of the people we put in come from Lambeth council's waiting list.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25That waiting list stands in the thousands.
0:21:25 > 0:21:30It's certainly not for people who own properties in the Home Counties worth £700,000.
0:21:30 > 0:21:35For neighbour Trevor, the callous way in which Lynch had played the system
0:21:35 > 0:21:38for so many years was particularly galling.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40I feel really upset about it,
0:21:40 > 0:21:45because a lot of people haven't got nowhere to go,
0:21:45 > 0:21:51sleeping on the street and that, and then you told me what's going on.
0:21:51 > 0:21:55I just think it's diabolical, really, know what I mean?
0:21:55 > 0:21:59Luckily Kathy Bateman, from Lambeth's Benefits Investigation Team,
0:21:59 > 0:22:03is hard on the trail of this devious octogenarian.
0:22:03 > 0:22:09We were more than happy that we were dealing with a multiple claim,
0:22:09 > 0:22:14and it was time to call Mrs Lynch in for a formal interview.
0:22:14 > 0:22:18And we arranged for our Tunbridge Wells colleagues to take part
0:22:18 > 0:22:22in that interview, where they could also formally identify her
0:22:22 > 0:22:25as the person they had been to see.
0:22:40 > 0:22:46The purpose of these interviews is to establish the true facts,
0:22:46 > 0:22:53and to give people the opportunity to offer some form of explanation for the discrepancies we've got.
0:22:53 > 0:22:59Ellen Lynch was unable to do that to any degree of satisfaction.
0:22:59 > 0:23:05She was firstly presented with evidence of the way she had submitted claims
0:23:05 > 0:23:07for housing benefit at Lambeth over many years,
0:23:07 > 0:23:13year by year not acknowledging - and there is a specific question that asks for this information -
0:23:13 > 0:23:18that she had ownership of a property elsewhere, i.e. in Tunbridge Wells.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29Don't be fooled by the sweet old lady act.
0:23:29 > 0:23:34The investigators are convinced she knows exactly what's going on.
0:24:35 > 0:24:42The best argument that she could come up with was that she didn't believe
0:24:42 > 0:24:47owning a house in Tunbridge Wells would have any impact on her claim in Lambeth.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07She felt the rented property in London was just somewhere she happened to be, it was rented,
0:25:07 > 0:25:13and she distinguished between a rented property that was a convenience
0:25:13 > 0:25:18and what she called her home in Tunbridge Wells, which was her purchased property,
0:25:18 > 0:25:23and she argued that because one was in Kent and one was in London, there was no relationship between them
0:25:23 > 0:25:28and claims she made in relation to the two properties should therefore be completely separate.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32That's a bit difficult to believe.
0:25:32 > 0:25:37We were fairly forthright with her, saying that she was being dishonest at that stage
0:25:37 > 0:25:40in seeking to deny she had these two identities,
0:25:40 > 0:25:47and that she was seeking to live two separate lives, as far as the councils were concerned.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17We were satisfied at that point that an offence had been committed
0:26:17 > 0:26:21and that Ellen Lynch knew exactly what she'd been doing.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24Over the course of more than 16 years,
0:26:24 > 0:26:30Ellen Lynch has defrauded the taxpayer to the tune of £70,000.
0:26:30 > 0:26:35It's the 16th May 2008 and Ellen Lynch appears before the Inner London Crown Court.
0:26:35 > 0:26:41In the face of overwhelming evidence against her, she drops the facade.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46By the time that Ellen Lynch had got to the Inner London Crown Court,
0:26:46 > 0:26:51she'd stopped playing the innocent old lady and decided to plead guilty.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56Ellen Lynch is found guilty on three counts of False Accounting,
0:26:56 > 0:27:03and ordered to repay more than £63,000 in Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit to Lambeth,
0:27:03 > 0:27:08plus a further £7,000 in Council Tax Benefit to Tunbridge Wells.
0:27:08 > 0:27:13She's also made to pay £2,000 in costs to Lambeth.
0:27:13 > 0:27:15And to ensure the message is heard loud and clear,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18the judge imposes a £50,000 fine,
0:27:18 > 0:27:25which has to be paid within 28 days or it's 18 months in jail.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28I think Ellen knew that she'd done something wrong.
0:27:30 > 0:27:35We heard that everyday she attended the crown court, she had with her a little bag
0:27:35 > 0:27:40that had a nightdress and toothbrush inside.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43Maybe she thought she was going to prison.
0:27:43 > 0:27:49And for investigator Kathy, Lynch was to provide one final surprise.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53She'd paid off, in full, all the money she'd fraudulently obtained.
0:27:53 > 0:28:00She managed to do that in a one-off payment in excess of £70,000,
0:28:00 > 0:28:03which, given that Ellen Lynch told us
0:28:03 > 0:28:07she'd never worked a day in her life, that's quite an achievement.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:28:35 > 0:28:39E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk