0:00:01 > 0:00:05Saints and Scroungers puts the spotlight on benefit thieves,
0:00:05 > 0:00:09those who ruthlessly steal millions of pounds from the British taxpayer.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13But we also search out the saints, the people who put unclaimed cash
0:00:13 > 0:00:16into the hands of those that really deserve it.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42Saints and Scroungers is all about busting benefit thieves
0:00:42 > 0:00:46who steal millions every year, and the crack team of investigators
0:00:46 > 0:00:48determined to scupper their devious scams.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52We also shine a light on those who genuinely need the money
0:00:52 > 0:00:54and the people who help them get it.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57They are our saints.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01The saints get help, and the fraudsters get their comeuppance.
0:01:01 > 0:01:03Coming up on today's show...
0:01:03 > 0:01:07the charity worker who abandoned her principles and ended up
0:01:07 > 0:01:08lining her own pockets
0:01:08 > 0:01:12with over £31,000 worth of illegally claimed benefits.
0:01:13 > 0:01:17At this point in the interview, I was thinking to myself,
0:01:17 > 0:01:21"Well, I know charity begins at home, but you are having a laugh."
0:01:21 > 0:01:24And we meet the devoted husband and father who,
0:01:24 > 0:01:29after a life of self-sacrifice, suddenly found himself in dire need.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32My savings went right down, right down.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34And it got to a point where I thought,
0:01:34 > 0:01:38"If this goes on, in a couple of years I'm going to have nothing."
0:01:41 > 0:01:45There are some people who have had a hard start in life,
0:01:45 > 0:01:48and they turn their experiences round to help others.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50What happens when greed takes over
0:01:50 > 0:01:53and they turn from saint to scrounger?
0:01:56 > 0:01:58Meet Memory Mafuta.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00This 39-year-old mum of three
0:02:00 > 0:02:03was orphaned as a young girl in Zimbabwe,
0:02:03 > 0:02:07but thanks to charity sponsorship she was able to receive an education
0:02:07 > 0:02:10and eventually came over to England, where she worked
0:02:10 > 0:02:12as a nurse in various care homes.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16Settled in Southend-on-Sea and determined to give something back,
0:02:16 > 0:02:19she decided to set up a charity
0:02:19 > 0:02:23which supplied medical aid to orphans in her homeland.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26But, while on the face of it Memory was apparently leading
0:02:26 > 0:02:31a blameless life, juggling work, family and her charity fundraising,
0:02:31 > 0:02:33it seems she was also lying to the council
0:02:33 > 0:02:39and making off with £31,072.75 worth
0:02:39 > 0:02:41of ill-gotten benefits.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49Grace Grimwade is a visiting officer for the Revenues and Benefits team
0:02:49 > 0:02:53from Southend-on-Sea Borough Council.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57It's her job to make regular checks on people who are on benefits,
0:02:57 > 0:03:00to make sure they're still entitled to them.
0:03:01 > 0:03:06Memory Mafuta was claiming housing benefit and council tax benefit
0:03:06 > 0:03:09from the council, and so was subject to these routine enquiries.
0:03:12 > 0:03:17My colleague had previously visited Mrs Mafuta in 2004,
0:03:17 > 0:03:19when she said she was
0:03:19 > 0:03:23living on wages from a nursing home.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26He then visited her again in 2007
0:03:26 > 0:03:29when she said the nursing home had closed down
0:03:29 > 0:03:33and she was now living on handouts from the church,
0:03:33 > 0:03:35didn't have any regular income at all.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40A couple of years later, and it was time for the next check-up.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43This time, it was Grace's turn to visit.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45So, on the appointed evening,
0:03:45 > 0:03:49she turned up at the house where Memory was living at that time.
0:03:49 > 0:03:51The first thing Memory told her was that she was still
0:03:51 > 0:03:53living on church handouts
0:03:53 > 0:03:56and, if anything, her situation had got worse.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00But, looking around, Grace wasn't convinced.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04She'd recently had a new baby, the baby stuff was all new,
0:04:04 > 0:04:09the flat itself was very comfortably furnished.
0:04:09 > 0:04:14She had two mobile phones, a fax machine...
0:04:14 > 0:04:19During the actual visit Mrs Mafuta received a phone call,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22and she replied to the person on the other line,
0:04:22 > 0:04:25"I'm in a meeting at the moment, I will phone you back later."
0:04:27 > 0:04:31At this point in the interview, I was thinking to myself,
0:04:31 > 0:04:36"Well, I know charity begins at home, but you are having a laugh."
0:04:38 > 0:04:42Along with the nice furnishings and 50-inch plasma TV,
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Grace noticed something else which didn't quite add up.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49As well as the baby, Memory also had two other children living with her
0:04:49 > 0:04:52who had recently arrived from Zimbabwe.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55What Grace wanted to know was, as an unemployed single parent,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58how was Memory supporting her family?
0:04:58 > 0:05:02She wasn't receiving any child benefit, any income support,
0:05:02 > 0:05:07any child tax credit for these children, which raised my suspicions
0:05:07 > 0:05:12that, well, the money is definitely coming from some other source.
0:05:12 > 0:05:17Grace came away from her visit convinced Memory was lying to her,
0:05:17 > 0:05:19and she wasn't happy about it.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25I was so incensed, I went straight into the fraud office
0:05:25 > 0:05:30and told them, "Right, this one is definitely taking the mickey.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32"Who wants to take this case up?"
0:05:35 > 0:05:38Paul Broadbent is a Housing Benefit Investigation Officer
0:05:38 > 0:05:40with Southend-on-Sea Council.
0:05:40 > 0:05:41When he heard Grace's account
0:05:41 > 0:05:44of her routine visit to Memory Mafuta,
0:05:44 > 0:05:47he jumped straight on the case and immediately pulled up
0:05:47 > 0:05:53all the information the council had on Memory and her benefits history.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55Mrs Mafuta claimed housing and council tax benefit
0:05:55 > 0:05:58from Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
0:05:58 > 0:06:00because she needed help to pay her rent.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05She claimed benefit from August 2003 to January 2010.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08So, Memory had a seven-year history of claiming housing benefit
0:06:08 > 0:06:11and council tax benefit.
0:06:11 > 0:06:13But Paul also saw that, although she was on record
0:06:13 > 0:06:17as having three children, being a lone parent and having zero income,
0:06:17 > 0:06:21she was not claiming either income support or Jobseekers' Allowance.
0:06:25 > 0:06:28We found it highly unusual
0:06:28 > 0:06:33that Mrs Mafuta decided not to apply for those benefits,
0:06:33 > 0:06:36and we decided to conduct a more thorough look
0:06:36 > 0:06:39into her circumstances and background.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43Then Paul noticed something else rather unusual.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46It seems Memory had told Southend-on-Sea Council
0:06:46 > 0:06:48that she didn't have a bank account,
0:06:48 > 0:06:51and had asked for her benefits to be paid to her by cheque
0:06:51 > 0:06:53that she could exchange for cash.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58When we did our credit reference checks, we identified
0:06:58 > 0:07:00a number of accounts to Mrs Mafuta at her address,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03that didn't appear to have been declared
0:07:03 > 0:07:05at any time during her claim to benefit.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11Memory's memory was obviously not that great,
0:07:11 > 0:07:15because she'd forgotten all about the bank accounts she had.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Of course, there's no crime
0:07:17 > 0:07:20in opening as many bank accounts as she likes.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23What Paul was interested in was what was inside them.
0:07:23 > 0:07:28We looked at the bank accounts and noticed that the accounts
0:07:28 > 0:07:30held significant sums of money,
0:07:30 > 0:07:33typically between £6,000 and £14,000,
0:07:33 > 0:07:37certainly enough to affect her entitlement to benefits.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40So, Grace's first suspicions were right.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43Far from living on the poverty line with no income, as she claimed,
0:07:43 > 0:07:46Memory had several bank accounts, each one containing
0:07:46 > 0:07:49between £6,000 and £14,000.
0:07:49 > 0:07:51For Paul, it was a major breakthrough,
0:07:51 > 0:07:53but what he wanted to know was,
0:07:53 > 0:07:56if Memory was capable of lying about the money,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58what else could she be lying about?
0:08:02 > 0:08:05We had evidence to suggest she might have an undeclared partner
0:08:05 > 0:08:08residing at the property, so we made an investigation
0:08:08 > 0:08:12and extensive enquiries to prove that was the case.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17Being a single mother without anyone to help pay the bills
0:08:17 > 0:08:21was an important part of Memory's original benefits claim.
0:08:21 > 0:08:25After some digging, Paul discovered she was indeed living with a man,
0:08:25 > 0:08:29but Paul needed to find out how involved with Memory
0:08:29 > 0:08:32and her family this man actually was.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35For all he knew, he could just be a tenant.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40Mrs Mafuta has three children.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42When we checked the birth certificates,
0:08:42 > 0:08:44they showed that the father was BLEEP,
0:08:44 > 0:08:47and the address they provided was the address behind me.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53So, let me get this straight - the father of her three children
0:08:53 > 0:08:55lives with her in the family home,
0:08:55 > 0:08:59and Memory still considers herself a single mother?
0:09:01 > 0:09:04Having established that Memory had lied about her savings
0:09:04 > 0:09:07and her relationship, now Paul needed to find out
0:09:07 > 0:09:10whether she was also lying about her lack of income.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14To do this, he needed to go back to her bank accounts.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19We looked at Mrs Mafuta's bank statements.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22They showed a lot of deposits from a number of employers,
0:09:22 > 0:09:25so naturally, the assumption is that she might have been working.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28We managed to identify ten employers.
0:09:28 > 0:09:31We got the details for Mrs Mafuta from several of those employers,
0:09:31 > 0:09:33and one for Mr BLEEP.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36The employers confirmed that Mrs Mafuta had been working
0:09:36 > 0:09:39throughout her claim to housing and council tax benefit,
0:09:39 > 0:09:42and also listed her partner as a next of kin.
0:09:44 > 0:09:49So, the woman who claimed she'd lost her job in a nursing home in 2007
0:09:49 > 0:09:52and hasn't worked since turns out to have been employed
0:09:52 > 0:09:55at not one, but several different care homes since then,
0:09:55 > 0:10:00earning an income of between £20,000 and 30,000 a year.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06But how had she got away with it?
0:10:06 > 0:10:08Further investigation revealed
0:10:08 > 0:10:11that Memory had gone to great lengths to avoid detection.
0:10:11 > 0:10:14Mrs Mafuta appeared to have two National Insurance numbers.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17She had one that she was receiving benefits under,
0:10:17 > 0:10:20and another one she appeared to be working under.
0:10:20 > 0:10:23Because of those two National Insurance numbers,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27we believed that she was concealing her activities in order
0:10:27 > 0:10:30to claim benefits that she knew she was not entitled to.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35By now, Paul had built up a pretty watertight case
0:10:35 > 0:10:37against Memory Mafuta,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40showing how she'd been systematically defrauding
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Southend-on-Sea Council for many years.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47One person who wasn't surprised was the woman who first smelt a rat
0:10:47 > 0:10:49all those months ago - Grace Grimwade.
0:10:49 > 0:10:54I was absolutely delighted that they'd done enough digging
0:10:54 > 0:10:57to bring all this to the surface, but it just made me
0:10:57 > 0:11:01more and more angry that people like this abuse the system
0:11:01 > 0:11:03the way they do, and get away with it.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11Next, it's farewell scroungers and hello to the saints -
0:11:11 > 0:11:14the innocent men and women all over the UK in dire need
0:11:14 > 0:11:15of government help,
0:11:15 > 0:11:21and the people who show them the way to claim what they deserve.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26When the ones you love need help, you'll do anything you can
0:11:26 > 0:11:29to make their life that little bit easier.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32But what happens when you're the one that falls on hard times?
0:11:32 > 0:11:34Where can you turn?
0:11:35 > 0:11:39Derek Charters had worked hard his entire life
0:11:39 > 0:11:41and cared for his invalid wife
0:11:41 > 0:11:46and his elderly mother without ever asking for help from the state.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48With his only son David having grown up and left,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50and his wife and mother passed away,
0:11:50 > 0:11:53Derek was now living alone. He was also an invalid himself,
0:11:53 > 0:11:55having survived the battle with cancer.
0:11:55 > 0:12:00As if that wasn't enough, he was facing serious money troubles.
0:12:00 > 0:12:01Derek had been told
0:12:01 > 0:12:04that a £12,000 work pension he had got when he retired
0:12:04 > 0:12:05meant he couldn't claim benefits.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10So he was forced to live off this money alone.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14My savings went right down, right down.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17I got to the point where I thought if this goes on,
0:12:17 > 0:12:18in a couple of years' time,
0:12:18 > 0:12:20I'm going to have nothing.
0:12:21 > 0:12:23Derek thought his situation was hopeless.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27He had resigned himself to losing the council house he grew up in
0:12:27 > 0:12:30because he could no longer afford the rent and upkeep.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35Just then, he spotted an advert for Age UK North Tyneside
0:12:35 > 0:12:38and made the decision to go along and talk to them.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42Jill Davidson is the information centre manager.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46I met Derek Charters on the front desk, on customer services.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50I just happened to be there one day and in Derek came.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53He had a newspaper clipping and he said,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55"I know you're not going to be able to help us."
0:12:55 > 0:12:58I said, "Well, tell us a little bit more and let's see if we can."
0:12:58 > 0:13:03I read that article and he says it tells me that people over 50
0:13:03 > 0:13:07can get help from Age UK and perhaps get benefits.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10He said, "I've checked this and I can't".
0:13:10 > 0:13:13I said, "OK, how about if we sat down together, in a couple of days' time?
0:13:13 > 0:13:16"I've got an appointment, let's work it out."
0:13:16 > 0:13:21Benefit advice is one of the most sought-after services
0:13:21 > 0:13:24that Age UK North Tyneside provide.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28Over half the people who contact the centre are after financial help.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31Most people come to us for practical help and support,
0:13:31 > 0:13:34with filling in their application forms.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Because they're quite long, 40-plus pages, it can be quite difficult
0:13:37 > 0:13:39for older people to do that themselves.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41We can take all that burden off them.
0:13:43 > 0:13:47We do try to help everybody as much as possible,
0:13:47 > 0:13:50but there are some people that, unfortunately, don't qualify
0:13:50 > 0:13:53and they're not entitled to benefits.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56Early the next week, Derek came in for his appointment with Jill
0:13:56 > 0:14:00and brought with a detailed list of his accounts and outgoings.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03What was clear to me when Derek came in
0:14:03 > 0:14:06was that within a short time, perhaps 18 months or so,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09he would have no savings left at all.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11Derek's situation is very common.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16People genuinely look and think, "Right, what do I pay this week?
0:14:16 > 0:14:20"Do I buy that extra food that I need? Do I turn the heating down?
0:14:20 > 0:14:23"Do I pay my rent?" and that sort of balancing up.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25They're not balancing up luxuries,
0:14:25 > 0:14:28they're balancing up very basic items that you need to live.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32After looking through all of his paperwork,
0:14:32 > 0:14:35Jill was able to give Derek her verdict.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37As soon as I saw Derek's financial situation,
0:14:37 > 0:14:39it was clear immediately
0:14:39 > 0:14:42that he was going to get quite a lot of help towards his rent
0:14:42 > 0:14:44and most of his council tax paid.
0:14:44 > 0:14:47I had a harder job persuading Derek that that was the case.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50She amazed me. She amazed me.
0:14:50 > 0:14:51I had all the documents
0:14:51 > 0:14:55and the income and she sat there and within four minutes,
0:14:55 > 0:14:59she's sitting there saying "That is what you are entitled to."
0:15:00 > 0:15:06I looked. I said, "You're joking?" She said, "No."
0:15:06 > 0:15:09"You should have been claiming all the time."
0:15:09 > 0:15:12Together, Jill and Derek filled in the relevant forms.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16According to her calculations, Derek would receive £58 a week
0:15:16 > 0:15:20in housing benefit and £10 a week in council tax benefits.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22When a professional fills a form in,
0:15:22 > 0:15:25it's different from when you or I do it.
0:15:25 > 0:15:29That basically is the gist of it.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33A few weeks later, and Derek started to receive his benefits.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36Because he was owed so much in back payments,
0:15:36 > 0:15:40he was also given a lump sum payout of about £1,000.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44Overnight, he swapped anxiety over diminishing savings
0:15:44 > 0:15:48for the reassurance of a regular weekly income.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51I don't have to choose between going and buy a loaf of bread
0:15:51 > 0:15:53or having an hour's heating.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56When we found out how much Derek was entitled to,
0:15:56 > 0:15:59it wasn't a surprise for us, but it was to Derek
0:15:59 > 0:16:01and that's the great thing about this job.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04You really get to see the results of your hard work.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08The best news of all is that after a lifetime of looking after others,
0:16:08 > 0:16:12Derek can now look forward to a peaceful retirement
0:16:12 > 0:16:14in a place that he knows well.
0:16:15 > 0:16:20This has been our family home since 1957.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25I would never leave it.
0:16:25 > 0:16:27There is that much history in this house.
0:16:27 > 0:16:32These days, Derek is a regular visitor to the Age UK drop-in centre
0:16:32 > 0:16:35where he keeps Jill up to date with how he's doing.
0:16:35 > 0:16:37'He looks much happier,
0:16:37 > 0:16:42'much more confident that he can continue to live his life'
0:16:42 > 0:16:48'and enjoy himself. It isn't necessarily with huge, you know,
0:16:48 > 0:16:52'expensive things that he's going to buy. It is basic things.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56'Derek is genuinely more contented and happy in his whole life.'
0:16:56 > 0:16:59If you want any help or advice, Age UK. That's the place to go.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03The place to go. It's something which never occurred to me,
0:17:03 > 0:17:04I wish to hell it had.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06It's thanks to Jill and Age UK
0:17:06 > 0:17:08that Derek can look forward to a future
0:17:08 > 0:17:10and relax in the knowledge
0:17:10 > 0:17:13that there is somebody out there if times get tough.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Back now to the world of the scrounger
0:17:20 > 0:17:21where the benefit investigators
0:17:21 > 0:17:24of Southend-on-Sea Borough Council are closing in
0:17:24 > 0:17:27on suspected fraudster, Memory Mafuta.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30For years, Memory had been claiming housing benefit
0:17:30 > 0:17:35and council tax benefit, posing as an unemployed single mother.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37Thanks to the combined efforts
0:17:37 > 0:17:40of benefit investigation officer Paul Broadbent
0:17:40 > 0:17:42and visiting officer Grace Grimwade,
0:17:42 > 0:17:46it looks like Memory's days of cheating the taxpayer are numbered.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52It didn't surprise me to find out that she had lots of money
0:17:52 > 0:17:55and she was actually working, drawing a wage,
0:17:55 > 0:17:58getting her council tax paid, getting her rent paid.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01Basically, she was laughing it up, wasn't she?
0:18:01 > 0:18:04After months of hard work and preparation,
0:18:04 > 0:18:08Paul Broadbent had amassed a pile of evidence to prove
0:18:08 > 0:18:11that, for the past six years, Memory had claimed
0:18:11 > 0:18:15over £31,000 worth of benefits that she wasn't entitled to.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Paul now felt ready to hear from the suspect herself.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22Memory Mafuta had some explaining to do.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26After we collated all the information and held the evidence,
0:18:26 > 0:18:31we decided to invite Mrs Mafuta in for a formal interview under caution.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34The purpose of the interview was to ask her to explain
0:18:34 > 0:18:40the discrepancies in her work, in her capital and savings and her partner.
0:18:45 > 0:18:48On 18 December 2009,
0:18:48 > 0:18:51Memory Mafuta was called in for an interview under caution.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56At the interview, Paul asked Memory why, despite the fact
0:18:56 > 0:18:59that she had been claiming benefits since 2003
0:18:59 > 0:19:01as an unemployed single mother,
0:19:01 > 0:19:03she had, during this time,
0:19:03 > 0:19:07been living with the father of her three children.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09He also wanted to know why she hadn't declared
0:19:09 > 0:19:12that she had in fact been working the whole time
0:19:12 > 0:19:17and had substantial undeclared savings in her bank accounts.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20When faced with this barrage of questions and accusations,
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Memory chose to say nothing.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27We asked Mrs Mafuta, at the start of the interview,
0:19:27 > 0:19:31if she wished to seek legal advice and she decided to take that offer.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34A few weeks later, and Memory was called in again
0:19:34 > 0:19:36for a second interview.
0:19:36 > 0:19:38This time, she attended with a lawyer.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42She refused to answer any of Paul's questions but she did decide
0:19:42 > 0:19:43to make a statement of her own.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47It was at the second interview
0:19:47 > 0:19:51that Mrs Mafuta declared that her partner had moved into her address
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and that he had moved in four months previously in September.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58This admission of guilt came out of the blue and may have
0:19:58 > 0:20:01looked like Memory had seen the error of her ways
0:20:01 > 0:20:03and wanted to make a clean breast of it,
0:20:03 > 0:20:04but Paul wasn't born yesterday.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09I think Mrs Mafuta chose to tell the council at that time
0:20:09 > 0:20:11about her partner moving in
0:20:11 > 0:20:16because she was aware of the evidence held against her
0:20:16 > 0:20:19and she was hoping that we would accept a smaller period
0:20:19 > 0:20:21that he had moved in
0:20:21 > 0:20:24and hopefully end up with a smaller overpayment of benefit.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28We had a discussion with Mrs Mafuta's solicitor and gave him disclosure,
0:20:28 > 0:20:33showed him the evidence that we intended to put towards Mrs Mafuta.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37Mrs Mafuta decided not to attend any further interviews
0:20:37 > 0:20:39and no questions were eventually able to be put to her.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43At this point, Paul could have been forgiven for thinking
0:20:43 > 0:20:46that was the last time he would hear from Memory
0:20:46 > 0:20:47until the case came to court.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50He certainly wasn't prepared for what came next.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53Shortly after the interview,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55an article appeared in the local paper.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59The article showed that Mrs Mafuta was a director of a local charity.
0:21:00 > 0:21:03Mrs Mafuta was appealing for funds,
0:21:03 > 0:21:08donations to support orphans and children in her native Zimbabwe.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14The council were already aware of Memory's connection to this charity.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17If she had hoped that by drawing attention to it in the press
0:21:17 > 0:21:21prior to her court case, the council would ease off on her,
0:21:21 > 0:21:23she had another think coming.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27I was absolutely furious when I saw that in the paper,
0:21:27 > 0:21:31that she was portraying herself as this goodly person.
0:21:31 > 0:21:36All the time, she was ripping the British taxpayer off,
0:21:36 > 0:21:38left, right and centre.
0:21:38 > 0:21:40So she didn't win any brownie points from Grace
0:21:40 > 0:21:43but being written up in the local paper as a do-gooder
0:21:43 > 0:21:46couldn't have done her any harm. Could it?
0:21:48 > 0:21:51The article said that she had been living since 2003
0:21:51 > 0:21:53with her husband and children.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Mrs Mafuta told the council
0:21:55 > 0:21:57that her partner had moved in in September 2009.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01The article seemed to be a public admission that this was not the case
0:22:01 > 0:22:05and, actually, her partner had been living there since 2003
0:22:05 > 0:22:06with her children.
0:22:09 > 0:22:10Oh, dear, oh, dear!
0:22:10 > 0:22:14It looks like Memory's attempt to manipulate the press turned out
0:22:14 > 0:22:16to be a spectacular own goal.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19At this point, you'd expect even the most hardened fraudster
0:22:19 > 0:22:21to retire to lick their wounds.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24But, oh, no, not Memory.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29Her next move amazed even a seasoned investigator like Paul.
0:22:29 > 0:22:30In August 2010, fully aware
0:22:30 > 0:22:34that she was being investigated for benefit fraud,
0:22:34 > 0:22:36she reapplied for more benefits.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39I was very surprised
0:22:39 > 0:22:42to find that Mrs Mafuta had been claiming benefits again
0:22:42 > 0:22:45from the August to October period.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48I was even more surprised when I found out she'd been working
0:22:48 > 0:22:52and, again, had not told us about that work.
0:22:52 > 0:22:54I don't know why Mrs Mafuta didn't tell us.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57I don't know if it was, by this stage, she thought
0:22:57 > 0:22:59she had nothing else to lose and just kept going,
0:22:59 > 0:23:02or whether she thought we wouldn't find out about it.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05I really don't know why she didn't declare that.
0:23:05 > 0:23:07It certainly didn't seem to be for financial reasons,
0:23:07 > 0:23:10judging by the amount of money in their accounts.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14News of this latest twist filtered back to Grace
0:23:14 > 0:23:18who, needless to say, was less than impressed.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22If that's not taking the rise, what is?
0:23:22 > 0:23:23It just makes me so cross
0:23:23 > 0:23:26because there are people out there who genuinely need help
0:23:26 > 0:23:31and they're not going to get it, because all that time and effort
0:23:31 > 0:23:34is wasted on people who are just abusing the system.
0:23:34 > 0:23:37By this stage, the team had had enough.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40For Paul Broadbent, the way forward was clear.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45There's significant evidence of undeclared work,
0:23:45 > 0:23:48undeclared capital held in undeclared accounts.
0:23:48 > 0:23:50There was enough to eliminate housing
0:23:50 > 0:23:53and council tax benefit entitlement for the period claimed.
0:23:53 > 0:23:55We believe that prosecution
0:23:55 > 0:23:58was the right form of action to take against Mrs Mafuta.
0:24:03 > 0:24:07On 8th July 2011, Memory Mafuta was summoned to appear
0:24:07 > 0:24:09at Basildon Crown Court.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11She was charged with ten counts of fraud
0:24:11 > 0:24:14under the Social Security Administration Act.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18Memory pleaded guilty to nine of these counts.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22But even at this late stage, after she had confessed her guilt,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26Memory still wasn't going to give up gracefully.
0:24:26 > 0:24:30When Mrs Mafuta appeared at court, she said she couldn't speak English.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34This was news to us because she had never indicated
0:24:34 > 0:24:38that she was not able to speak English or communicate,
0:24:38 > 0:24:40have any difficulty communicating with us at all.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43Certainly didn't seem to have any problems
0:24:43 > 0:24:46speaking to the news reporters or her employers.
0:24:46 > 0:24:51We paid for the interpreter at the taxpayers' expense
0:24:51 > 0:24:53throughout the court process.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57In the end, none of Memory's game-playing made any difference.
0:24:57 > 0:25:02The judge found that between October 2003 and January 2010,
0:25:02 > 0:25:07she had swindled Southend Council out of £30,612.02
0:25:07 > 0:25:11in council tax benefit and housing benefit.
0:25:13 > 0:25:19Add that to the £460.73 she claimed between August and October 2010,
0:25:19 > 0:25:24and the grand total of ill-gotten gains come to an eye-watering
0:25:24 > 0:25:28£31,072.75.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33Memory's partner was never interviewed by investigators
0:25:33 > 0:25:35or prosecuted for any offence.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39Memory was sentenced to nine months in prison, suspended for 12 months
0:25:39 > 0:25:44as the judge said he wanted to avoid taxpayers paying out any more money.
0:25:44 > 0:25:48He also ordered Memory to repay the 31 grand of benefits,
0:25:48 > 0:25:50but not exactly as Paul would have liked.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55She was not ordered to pay the money back through the courts
0:25:55 > 0:25:57and it's down to the authority
0:25:57 > 0:25:59to recoup that money from Mrs Mafuta in the future.
0:25:59 > 0:26:04If she were to claim benefits, then we could get that money back from her
0:26:04 > 0:26:07by taking it off her ongoing benefit entitlement.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12Overall, the team were pleased with the outcome of their investigation.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15This case isn't one of the worst that I've ever come across
0:26:15 > 0:26:18whilst I've been working here at Southend, but it's in the top ten.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23It wasn't someone who was doing a bit of work on the side
0:26:23 > 0:26:26and just needed some cash for Christmas, or to pay off a debt,
0:26:26 > 0:26:28or something like that, this was a pure case of greed.
0:26:28 > 0:26:33Thanks to my referral to the Fraud Office in the first place,
0:26:33 > 0:26:35I'm glad that this has gone to court.
0:26:35 > 0:26:39I'm glad she's got her comeuppance and I just hope it's a lesson
0:26:39 > 0:26:43to anyone else who's thinking of trying to pull the same stunt.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47We may not get you today but we will get you, soon or later.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53From charity saint to benefit cheat, let's hope Memory
0:26:53 > 0:26:57remembers the consequences of her crime for a long time to come.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd