0:00:02 > 0:00:06In the UK, most of us work hard and pay our taxes.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09Most people, basically, intrinsically, won't fiddle.
0:00:09 > 0:00:14I'm happy I live in a society that has a safety net for the poor.
0:00:14 > 0:00:16And we generally agree that it's right,
0:00:16 > 0:00:20that a proportion of what you earn should go into a pot
0:00:20 > 0:00:22that's there to help you, should you need it.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26But that money doesn't always find its way to the right people.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29I think lying to gain the benefit is so wrong.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31It's awful.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34If you believe in karma, it's going to come back round and get you.
0:00:34 > 0:00:37There are big changes taking place in the welfare system
0:00:37 > 0:00:40here in the UK.
0:00:40 > 0:00:42And now it's more important than ever that the right help
0:00:42 > 0:00:45gets to the right people.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48This is the world of Saints And Scroungers.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56Coming up - the scroungers that are out to beat the system.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59A removals man moving more than just furniture,
0:00:59 > 0:01:01as he tries to avoid paying his dues
0:01:01 > 0:01:04after inheriting a large sum of money.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07It seemed quite apparent from the very first moment
0:01:07 > 0:01:10that I read the papers and examined all the documents,
0:01:10 > 0:01:14that he'd set out to totally ignore all requests for payment.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17And those who rightly deserve a helping hand -
0:01:17 > 0:01:20an ex-police officer who's reluctant to ask for help
0:01:20 > 0:01:23when he gets struck down by two life-threatening diseases
0:01:23 > 0:01:26and faces financial insecurity.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29It's the not knowing that's the biggest thing.
0:01:29 > 0:01:31I was so worried.
0:01:35 > 0:01:40When you lose a parent it can be a difficult and confusing time.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44There's a lot of paperwork to handle and also, of course, the funeral.
0:01:44 > 0:01:47Now, an inheritance doesn't provide any consolation
0:01:47 > 0:01:51but it can give you a bit of a financial cushion through that time.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54Depending on your circumstances, it can also be something
0:01:54 > 0:01:58you're duty-bound to let the authorities know about.
0:01:58 > 0:02:0150-year-old Michael Sheehy knows what it's like.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05A self-employed removals man from Paignton in Devon,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08he lost his father in June 2008.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13But six months later, after probate was granted,
0:02:13 > 0:02:18he received a sizeable inheritance - £114,000.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Any comfort this money had provided came to an end, though,
0:02:23 > 0:02:27as less than two years later he found himself in the red.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31With an involuntary bankruptcy order
0:02:31 > 0:02:36and debts to various creditors of over £58,000.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39Must have been one hell of a party.
0:02:39 > 0:02:41So, how did this all happen?
0:02:41 > 0:02:45How did Sheehy get into so much debt so quickly?
0:02:45 > 0:02:47Part of the money he owed was connected
0:02:47 > 0:02:51to his £114,000 inheritance.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54When someone dies, the Department for Work and Pensions
0:02:54 > 0:02:57automatically get details of the will.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01They discovered that Sheehy Senior had been overpaid pension credits
0:03:01 > 0:03:03by almost £23,000.
0:03:03 > 0:03:08That's not to say that Sheehy Senior had deliberately defrauded anyone,
0:03:08 > 0:03:12it was just something that only came to light after he died.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16So, Sheehy didn't just inherit money,
0:03:16 > 0:03:20he also inherited an associated debt.
0:03:20 > 0:03:24But even if he chose to pay off the DWP,
0:03:24 > 0:03:28he'd still be left with tens of thousands of pounds to enjoy.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Sheehy didn't want to give up any of his money,
0:03:32 > 0:03:37as along with the DWP, he also owed the taxman.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40As a self-employed removals man, he was responsible for paying
0:03:40 > 0:03:44the tax on any income he earned from his business.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47But he wasn't.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51In total, he owed nearly £31,000.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54And he wasn't great at paying utility bills
0:03:54 > 0:03:55when they came in either.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59Added to his debt was an extra £4,000 he owed to a bank
0:03:59 > 0:04:01and water company.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05With the associated inheritance debt of £23,000,
0:04:05 > 0:04:10Sheehy was a whopping £58,000 in the red.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14Even so, with his inheritance, simple maths still leaves him flush
0:04:14 > 0:04:17and more than able to pay his debts.
0:04:17 > 0:04:21But Sheehy ignored all demands from his creditors for payment.
0:04:21 > 0:04:24They were left with no choice
0:04:24 > 0:04:28and in August 2010 he was declared bankrupt.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32Carol Butler is an official receiver from the Insolvency Service
0:04:32 > 0:04:34based in Exeter,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37and she was responsible for handling his case.
0:04:37 > 0:04:42If you become bankrupt then you lose all your assets, on the whole.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44There are various exceptions.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48We might allow them their vehicle if they need it for work.
0:04:48 > 0:04:53But they do lose any assets they have and we may look to see if they can
0:04:53 > 0:04:56make contributions throughout their bankruptcy
0:04:56 > 0:05:00towards their creditors, out of their income.
0:05:00 > 0:05:04So it is quite a stringent regime.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06Having been forced into bankruptcy,
0:05:06 > 0:05:11he was now required to surrender any assets he had to pay his dues.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15We knew where he was, we had his address.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20So we knew our letters were reaching him. We had a telephone number.
0:05:20 > 0:05:25It wasn't that we had to track him down, he was just not cooperating.
0:05:25 > 0:05:29Nothing we were asking Mr Sheehy to do was to unreasonable,
0:05:29 > 0:05:34and therefore he has a duty to provide us with the information.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38Carol and her team could only speculate as to why
0:05:38 > 0:05:40he was ignoring them.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42All they knew for certain is that he'd inherited
0:05:42 > 0:05:46over £100,000 less than two years earlier.
0:05:47 > 0:05:52If someone gets a lot of money and then doesn't pay their creditors when
0:05:52 > 0:05:56they were clearly in a position to do so, then that flags it up immediately
0:05:56 > 0:06:01as misconduct, and something that we ought to do something about,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04not just try and recover what monies we can
0:06:04 > 0:06:07but also take action to be a deterrent
0:06:07 > 0:06:10so that other people are not tempted to do the same sort of thing
0:06:10 > 0:06:14because they think they can get away with it.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17So what if a bankrupt tries to dodge their debts?
0:06:17 > 0:06:20Well, then it's the responsibility of John Pearson,
0:06:20 > 0:06:22one of 40 investigators from the Government's
0:06:22 > 0:06:27Business, Innovation & Skills Department to prosecute.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31It's our job to gather evidence when allegations of criminal offences
0:06:31 > 0:06:33are identified to the organisation.
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Put simply, quite often the offences revolve around people
0:06:37 > 0:06:39who are have debt,
0:06:39 > 0:06:42want to declare themselves bankrupt to get rid of that debt, and yet
0:06:42 > 0:06:45they have some assets of one kind or another, whether it be
0:06:45 > 0:06:47a property or money in the bank, and they want to keep that as well.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51And clearly that's neither fair or right, because these people will
0:06:51 > 0:06:54have creditors, and the idea is that those creditors should get
0:06:54 > 0:06:55some money back.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00Sheehy failed to attend three separate interviews that Carol
0:07:00 > 0:07:04and her team had set up for him.
0:07:04 > 0:07:09It had been a frustrating few weeks but, at last, a breakthrough.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13We finally managed to get hold of him in October
0:07:13 > 0:07:16but he still wasn't really cooperating.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21It was a brief amount of information on the telephone about his assets
0:07:21 > 0:07:26and his business, but it was a very limited amount of information.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30He arranged to come in for interview but then didn't turn up.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35Sheehy was dead set on avoiding the authorities.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38Find out later if they can get him to cough up before he has time
0:07:38 > 0:07:41to spend all his inheritance.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43It seemed quite apparent from the very first moment
0:07:43 > 0:07:48that I read the papers and examined all the documents that he'd set out
0:07:48 > 0:07:54to totally ignore all requests for payment from any Crown department.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57In the first place, he had no intention of letting the Revenue
0:07:57 > 0:07:59know what he was actually earning and filling in his tax forms,
0:07:59 > 0:08:02like everyone else has to do,
0:08:02 > 0:08:06which leaves us all paying that little bit extra.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11For now, it's goodbye to the scroungers
0:08:11 > 0:08:13who are dodging their dues,
0:08:13 > 0:08:16and hello to those who we call our saints -
0:08:16 > 0:08:19the people who do everything to make sure that those in desperate
0:08:19 > 0:08:22need of help, who are too proud or simply don't know how to help
0:08:22 > 0:08:25themselves, get what they deserve.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34Nobody likes being ill or going to hospital.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38But there are certain illnesses and diseases with which the very
0:08:38 > 0:08:41name itself can strike fear into you.
0:08:41 > 0:08:47Imagine being diagnosed with not just one but two of those.
0:08:47 > 0:08:50This is exactly what happened to former police officer Mike Peak.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54He retired in 1998 after spending 30 years in the force,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58but just nine years later began to find it increasingly hard
0:08:58 > 0:09:02to recover from day-to-day tasks like gardening.
0:09:02 > 0:09:07He went for tests and was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10I went through a range of emotions...
0:09:10 > 0:09:11..ranging from, "Why me?
0:09:11 > 0:09:13"What have I done to deserve this?"
0:09:13 > 0:09:18My feelings were one of frustration as much as anything else because
0:09:18 > 0:09:23I wasn't able to do activities or things that I was able to do before.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26Mike's wife Sandra lived through it with him.
0:09:26 > 0:09:31With Parkinson's, you have to initiate all the movements.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34Your brain has to tell your body to do the movements,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37so walking isn't so easy.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41The one he continued to do of his old things was cycling,
0:09:41 > 0:09:43but not to the same extent.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46This was particularly hard on an active man like Mike
0:09:46 > 0:09:49who had participated in sport all his life.
0:09:49 > 0:09:53I've come to his Nottinghamshire home to find out more.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56- So, Mike, how has life changed for you?- Well, I used to...
0:09:56 > 0:09:59Since I retired from the police force, I had my own gardening
0:09:59 > 0:10:01and odd-job business,
0:10:01 > 0:10:07and I wasn't able to do the jobs so I had to sort of fold the business up
0:10:07 > 0:10:11because I just physically couldn't do the work any more.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15And what did that do for your state of mind?
0:10:15 > 0:10:18I'm quite a determined sort of character.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21And I...
0:10:21 > 0:10:23set about doing things that I could do.
0:10:23 > 0:10:25And the specialist said to me,
0:10:25 > 0:10:29"The best thing you could do is to be as active as you possibly can."
0:10:29 > 0:10:33And so that was sort of a green light to me, if you like,
0:10:33 > 0:10:38to be as active as I possibly can. So I started doing Pilates,
0:10:38 > 0:10:42hydrospin, keep fit, because I've always been very active.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45No longer able to work in his gardening business,
0:10:45 > 0:10:48Mike and Sandra instead focused on trying to
0:10:48 > 0:10:52enjoy their retirement, albeit with less money coming in.
0:10:52 > 0:10:58We didn't allow Parkinson's to affect our life more.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00We decided we would adapt.
0:11:00 > 0:11:02We've kept up all our social life.
0:11:02 > 0:11:08And that is why he does very little housework and gardening, so that his
0:11:08 > 0:11:12strength can be used on our social life, because it's more important.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15Mike was coping as well as he could with Parkinson's.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18Then they noticed something else was wrong.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22Michael had got a patch on his shoulder
0:11:22 > 0:11:26and a strange lump on his ear.
0:11:26 > 0:11:31It was like a bead at the top of his ear but it got bigger and then
0:11:31 > 0:11:36it began to be a real problem, and I was sure they were both sinister.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39So I asked him to go to our GP
0:11:39 > 0:11:40and get it checked out.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44Sandra and Mike's biggest fear was realised
0:11:44 > 0:11:46when, after biopsies were taken,
0:11:46 > 0:11:49they were told that Mike had cancer.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52"Cancer" is a very emotive word.
0:11:52 > 0:11:59And it conjures up all sorts of emotions, all bad.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03With a lack of knowledge, you imagine all sorts of different things.
0:12:03 > 0:12:08Despite Mike facing Parkinson's head on,
0:12:08 > 0:12:11this news completely threw them off course.
0:12:11 > 0:12:16When he got the realisation that he'd got cancer...
0:12:16 > 0:12:19..he was a very frightened man.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22As was I.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27We didn't want to tell people close to us.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32It's too scary a thought to sort of say to people, like,
0:12:32 > 0:12:34"Am I going to die?"
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Because you think, "Am I going to die?" But being a typical man,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41he tried to hide it.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45Living with cancer presents constant challenges,
0:12:45 > 0:12:47not just emotionally but financially as well.
0:12:47 > 0:12:52But rather than face it, Mike just wanted to ignore it.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55I think when people are first diagnosed with cancer,
0:12:55 > 0:12:57their initial reaction is normally shock.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00They'll then often go into a period of grieving, actually.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04They'll be grieving for the loss of a life that they had before,
0:13:04 > 0:13:06the diagnosis and a loss of themselves.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10It also affects not only themselves but their family as well.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13Mike was presented with some stark options
0:13:13 > 0:13:16if he was to give himself the very best chance of survival,
0:13:16 > 0:13:19and it would change the Mike he saw in the mirror.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23They carried out the operation for partial amputation of my left ear.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25So I had, like, half an ear.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27Lower half, top half being missing.
0:13:28 > 0:13:32It looked quite strange. To me, in my eyes, anyway.
0:13:32 > 0:13:36But the tests said that they had got all the tumour and as far as I
0:13:36 > 0:13:40was concerned, at that stage, the job was finished and everything was OK.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44Mike and Sandra went back to enjoying their retirement,
0:13:44 > 0:13:48albeit having to make allowances for Mike's Parkinson's
0:13:48 > 0:13:51until, just two years later, once again,
0:13:51 > 0:13:53their world was turned upside down.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57I was sat at Trent Bridge with my son watching the Test match.
0:13:57 > 0:14:01I found the lump in my neck behind what was left of my ear.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04I really started to get worried.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07So I went to the dermatologist nurse,
0:14:07 > 0:14:13got her to have a look at it and it was her, then, that referred me
0:14:13 > 0:14:18to the specialists, and so it escalated from there.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21The cancer had returned but Sandra and Mike had an excruciating
0:14:21 > 0:14:27seven-week wait to find out just how far it had spread.
0:14:27 > 0:14:31When you understand what it is that you have to deal with,
0:14:31 > 0:14:32you find a way to deal with that.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35But during those weeks waiting for the scan results,
0:14:35 > 0:14:37you didn't know what you were dealing with.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Didn't know what we were dealing with.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42Your mind wanders all over the place.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44During that seven weeks I didn't know
0:14:44 > 0:14:47whether I was riddled with it, whether it was localised or anything.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50It was a very, very traumatic and very worrying time.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54And you're also trying to plan for the future and trying to
0:14:54 > 0:14:57understand what that future holds for yourself and for Sandra.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00You don't know what the future is. You don't know if there is a future.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03It was very scary indeed,
0:15:03 > 0:15:08because my brain said he must be absolutely riddled.
0:15:08 > 0:15:14We were in such fear that we were beginning to lose it.
0:15:14 > 0:15:19We didn't feel that we could dump this on our children
0:15:19 > 0:15:25and on, like, his mum, and we were trying to hold it all together.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27But it built up and built up.
0:15:27 > 0:15:33We were thinking the worst and it was just getting on top of us.
0:15:33 > 0:15:34I was so worried.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39I went to tears.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50Mike and Sandra had no idea what the future held and the financial
0:15:50 > 0:15:54uncertainty of how they would afford any major changes they needed to make.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58They turned to a cancer care centre in Nottingham and Kate Martin,
0:15:58 > 0:16:00a cancer support specialist.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03Here at Maggie's we offer a programme of support
0:16:03 > 0:16:04to anyone affected by cancer.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07When Mike and Sandra came to the centre, they were
0:16:07 > 0:16:10obviously very concerned for their future, for Mike's future,
0:16:10 > 0:16:12and very uncertain about what was going on.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15Mike was quite withdrawn, he was obviously very anxious
0:16:15 > 0:16:18and I think he was finding it quite difficult to cope.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21Sandra, on the other hand, seemed a little bit more upbeat
0:16:21 > 0:16:23but I think she was just probably trying to be strong for Mike.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26This lady came and took us...
0:16:30 > 0:16:32..to a quiet room.
0:16:35 > 0:16:37Talked to us.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40Gently...
0:16:40 > 0:16:44And we began...to come down.
0:16:44 > 0:16:46She obviously could see that...
0:16:46 > 0:16:48We needed help.
0:16:48 > 0:16:52And just talked to us and went through it.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55It was clear that Mike and Sandra desperately needed
0:16:55 > 0:16:58the support that the centre offered
0:16:58 > 0:17:02and I've come to meet Kate and find out more about what they do here.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06This doesn't feel like a hospital or any kind of medical centre
0:17:06 > 0:17:09that I've ever been to. Is that part of the idea?
0:17:09 > 0:17:14Building design is a fundamental part of the Maggie's programme. It's very, very non-institutional
0:17:14 > 0:17:16and I think that puts people at ease immediately.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19It means that they can relax in an environment that is very close
0:17:19 > 0:17:21to the hospital, but not the hospital.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24So when Mike walked through the doors here,
0:17:24 > 0:17:31you know, you have a chap who seems very strong in many ways,
0:17:31 > 0:17:36but he's been given repeated difficult hands to deal with,
0:17:36 > 0:17:38one after the other.
0:17:38 > 0:17:42And finally, he's got something he doesn't know how he can deal with.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45How do you start to approach that yourself?
0:17:45 > 0:17:49Really, I think a lot of people that come through the door
0:17:49 > 0:17:50are very uncertain of the future.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52That's something that's common with everyone.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56No matter what your diagnosis is, there's an element of uncertainty
0:17:56 > 0:17:59with any cancer diagnosis, and whether that cancer will recur.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01Mike's fears at the time were obviously very real,
0:18:01 > 0:18:04about whether the cancer had spread, and along with Sandra, his wife,
0:18:04 > 0:18:07we were sitting around the table chatting and Chris, our benefits advisor,
0:18:07 > 0:18:11also started talking to them, and through that conversation he realised that they hadn't
0:18:11 > 0:18:13actually claimed any benefits at that time.
0:18:13 > 0:18:18And so he suggested that they well may be eligible for the Disability Living Allowance.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21With the financial help of the Disability Living Allowance
0:18:21 > 0:18:23they were entitled to,
0:18:23 > 0:18:26and a mobility car to make hospital visits easier,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29the pressure on the couple was beginning to lift.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32A few weeks after having found the centre,
0:18:32 > 0:18:34doctors finally gave Mike the news
0:18:34 > 0:18:36he'd been so desperately waiting for.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39Thankfully, his cancer was localised,
0:18:39 > 0:18:42and treatable with surgery and radiotherapy.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45It was going to be a tough recovery
0:18:45 > 0:18:47but Kate was there for Mike throughout the treatment.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50He started to get quite poorly.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53He lost a lot of weight and he became quite ill
0:18:53 > 0:18:56and very, very thin, and we were all quite worried for him.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00He really struggled to eat and we would try and get food down him,
0:19:00 > 0:19:03and he'd manage it and then he would be sick.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07He lost a total of four stone...
0:19:07 > 0:19:10over that period of time.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13I mean, the weight just dropped off him.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16During the gruelling weeks of radiotherapy treatment,
0:19:16 > 0:19:20the centre became their haven, somewhere they could turn to.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24Tell me how everything changed for you since you first came here.
0:19:24 > 0:19:25Well...
0:19:25 > 0:19:29I can't explain it, really. We didn't expect them
0:19:29 > 0:19:31to help us in the way they did.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35And it just is a release of tension because I didn't feel we could
0:19:35 > 0:19:41load it onto Michael's mum, our son, our daughter, and even our friends,
0:19:41 > 0:19:45whereas you come here and you let these poor souls get the lot.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48After having surgery to remove the lump and completing
0:19:48 > 0:19:53his course of radiotherapy, Mike's future is now looking brighter.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57Your journey with cancer, where are you now on that road?
0:19:57 > 0:20:01I believe I'm out the tunnel at the other end.
0:20:01 > 0:20:05I saw the oncologist a couple of weeks ago,
0:20:05 > 0:20:09who said that she could find nothing to give cause for concern.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11- But you can never completely close the door?- No.
0:20:11 > 0:20:15- It doesn't work like that.- No, you can never completely close the door,
0:20:15 > 0:20:17there's always the chance it will return.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21But the worst is over, things are as good as they can be.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25You and Sandra have an amazing partnership, really.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27We actually...
0:20:27 > 0:20:29I've got nothing but praise for her.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33She has stood by me all the way through.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36So where are you at right now?
0:20:36 > 0:20:39I'm determined Michael will not end up in a nursing home.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41I've worked in a nursing home, it was good,
0:20:41 > 0:20:44but I want him home with me into our old age.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48Life is very precious.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50And...
0:20:50 > 0:20:52And life's for living.
0:20:52 > 0:20:54And I'm going to love it.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01It's time to leave our saints
0:21:01 > 0:21:05and return to the greedy world of our money-hungry scroungers.
0:21:08 > 0:21:14Despite inheriting £114,000 in 2009,
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Michael Sheehy, "a man with a van" from Devon,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20was forced to go bankrupt just 19 months later
0:21:20 > 0:21:24for owing £58,000 to the Department for Work and Pensions
0:21:24 > 0:21:26and the tax man.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30So, had he really lost all his money in such a short period of time?
0:21:30 > 0:21:34Carol Butler from the Insolvency Service suspected
0:21:34 > 0:21:37that he wasn't playing by the bankruptcy rules and,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41after months of trying, she finally tracked him down.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43He did tell us he had a bank account,
0:21:43 > 0:21:46but couldn't provide us with the details.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51It's very difficult to say what his motivation was,
0:21:51 > 0:21:56other than that he was not going to tell us about this money that he had.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59It is difficult to see that there could be
0:21:59 > 0:22:01any other motivation for not telling us.
0:22:01 > 0:22:07Sheehy wasn't playing by the rules of insolvency that bankrupts should,
0:22:07 > 0:22:09so Carol was left with little choice.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12Because we weren't getting cooperation,
0:22:12 > 0:22:16we sought his public examination at court
0:22:16 > 0:22:19in January 2011.
0:22:19 > 0:22:24Sheehy now had no option but to show up with his bank account details.
0:22:24 > 0:22:31He'd inherited over £100,000, a sum that most people can only dream of.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34So, they were hoping the account would show that BUT...
0:22:36 > 0:22:39What we discovered was that, at the time of the bankruptcy order,
0:22:39 > 0:22:43there had been quite a considerable sum of money in the bank account,
0:22:43 > 0:22:47but in between the order being made
0:22:47 > 0:22:49and getting what was left,
0:22:49 > 0:22:51some monies had been withdrawn.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54In fact, he'd actually withdrawn money
0:22:54 > 0:22:57on the day following the bankruptcy order.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00We did manage to recover about £26,000.
0:23:02 > 0:23:0426K.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07That is less than half of what he owed
0:23:07 > 0:23:10and less than half his inheritance.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13But finally, the Insolvency Service had the evidence they needed
0:23:13 > 0:23:16to show that he'd been flouting the bankruptcy laws.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20After giving Carol the run-around for months,
0:23:20 > 0:23:22forcing her to drag him to court,
0:23:22 > 0:23:26she discovered, from his £114,000 inheritance,
0:23:26 > 0:23:31£88,000 had gone walkabouts while his creditors were still owed money.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35This was now a criminal investigation,
0:23:35 > 0:23:37and John Pearson, an investigation officer
0:23:37 > 0:23:41from the Department of Business, Innovation & Skills,
0:23:41 > 0:23:42was handed the case.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46We're there to investigate and find the truth.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49Most people are law-abiding citizens
0:23:49 > 0:23:52and we only get referred a small number of the cases
0:23:52 > 0:23:54that the Insolvency Service deal with -
0:23:54 > 0:23:56the people that need to be dealt with properly
0:23:56 > 0:23:58and need to get their just desserts.
0:23:58 > 0:24:03And John was on board to make sure that Sheehy got his comeuppance.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08By the time that he actually handed over that that bankbook,
0:24:08 > 0:24:10the vast majority had disappeared
0:24:10 > 0:24:15and there still wasn't enough in there then to pay off all his debts.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18They recovered £26,000 from Sheehy's account.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22But he still owed a further 32,000.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26To suggest it's a victimless crime
0:24:26 > 0:24:29because it's the Crown that's lost is totally and utterly wrong.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32It's because those assets are lost to the Crown
0:24:32 > 0:24:34that other people end up paying a little bit more tax -
0:24:34 > 0:24:38the Treasury have to deal with it in one way or another.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42Sheehy had clearly spent, or hidden, the remaining 32 grand.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44But could they track it down?
0:24:44 > 0:24:47He was withdrawing it in fairly regular amounts.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49They were generally for £500.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51Sometimes two days at a time.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55He might go on a Tuesday and back again on a Thursday.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58You have to ask yourself where that money went.
0:24:58 > 0:24:59Where indeed?
0:24:59 > 0:25:04He got his inheritance of over £100,000 in January 2009,
0:25:04 > 0:25:08but by the time Carol obtained his bank statements,
0:25:08 > 0:25:10there were just £26,000 left.
0:25:12 > 0:25:16When you consider the amount of the original inheritance,
0:25:16 > 0:25:18which would have paid all his creditors,
0:25:18 > 0:25:22I think most members of the public WOULD find that quite shocking
0:25:22 > 0:25:24and not acceptable behaviour.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29John was dead set on finding the £32,000 still owed
0:25:29 > 0:25:30to the public purse.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36He sought witness statements from the HMRC, the DWP and Carol
0:25:36 > 0:25:41to show, without doubt, that Sheehy had flouted the bankruptcy laws.
0:25:41 > 0:25:43He then contacted Sheehy
0:25:43 > 0:25:46and invited him for an interview under caution
0:25:46 > 0:25:49in an attempt to find out where this money had gone.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51Rather surprisingly, I have to say,
0:25:51 > 0:25:54I received a reply quite promptly saying that he would attend
0:25:54 > 0:25:58the interview at Exeter and would be interviewed under caution.
0:25:58 > 0:26:00I say "surprisingly" because I knew, of course,
0:26:00 > 0:26:03that he'd failed consistently
0:26:03 > 0:26:06to have anything to do with all the other public departments
0:26:06 > 0:26:08and ignored the letters.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12But as I drove to Exeter that day to interview him,
0:26:12 > 0:26:15I did consider whether I would be going on a bit of a false journey
0:26:15 > 0:26:17and whether he'd, in fact, turn up,
0:26:17 > 0:26:20because on a number of occasions, he'd made appointments,
0:26:20 > 0:26:23said he was going to turn up for the Insolvency Service, and never did.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29Astonishingly, Sheehy DID turn up this time.
0:26:29 > 0:26:33Was John close to finally tracking down the missing money?
0:26:33 > 0:26:35Having arrived, he then told me, quite clearly,
0:26:35 > 0:26:38that he'd come along to the interview
0:26:38 > 0:26:41but he had no intention of giving me any information whatsoever.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46So, Sheehy was back to his old tricks again.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48Tight-lipped and tight-pursed.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51This time, though, there was no hiding place -
0:26:51 > 0:26:55John already had enough incriminating evidence against him.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58The lawyers did decide the evidence was clear
0:26:58 > 0:27:02and sufficient enough to prosecute, that it was in the public interest.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05Clearly, where at all possible, we were also trying
0:27:05 > 0:27:08to make people realise that people who commit these offences
0:27:08 > 0:27:11will be tracked down, will be prosecuted
0:27:11 > 0:27:13and possibly will go to prison.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17Sheehy was committed for trial by jury at Exeter Crown Court
0:27:17 > 0:27:19in January 2013,
0:27:19 > 0:27:24a mere four years since he'd inherited over £100,000.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27He stood accused of three counts
0:27:27 > 0:27:30of removing money totalling £37,600
0:27:30 > 0:27:34from his accounts and one count of failing to disclose these funds.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38Sheehy pleaded guilty to all four counts
0:27:38 > 0:27:42and was sentenced to 12 months in prison.
0:27:42 > 0:27:43What a sorry tale.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45If only Sheehy had paid off that debt
0:27:45 > 0:27:48when he'd inherited the money, then he would have been all right
0:27:48 > 0:27:52and still had nearly half to himself.
0:27:52 > 0:27:53As it was...
0:27:53 > 0:27:57Well, once the DWP and the HMRC get their teeth into you,
0:27:57 > 0:28:00they are unlikely to let go.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04He may have the rest of that money hidden away somewhere in a suitcase,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07ready to spend once again in shops and restaurants,
0:28:07 > 0:28:12but for the next 12 months at least, he's on a strict diet of porridge.