A benefits cheat who failed to declare he had two jobs whilst claiming benefits has been spared jailed and ordered to pay back £20 a week.
Jeremy James Rennison, 55, has been handed a suspended sentence after he failed to declare employment at two companies on the Isle of Man.
He also must pay £300 prosecution costs at a rate of £5 per week, deducted from benefits.
Rennison had been claiming income support benefit, which resulted in him being overpaid by £6,788.
A benefits cheat who was overpaid by almost £7,000 was caught after he took his employer to a tribunal despite having two jobs
GETTYThe case came to light after Rennison filed a tribunal claim against his former employer, Portofino restaurant in Douglas, Isle of Man.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) discovered he had been claiming income support since March 2023.
Three months later, Rennison began working at the quayside restaurant in Douglas - where he was employed from June to August 2023. He was earning £10 per hour in cash payments.
During the tribunal, he claimed he hadn't received payment for his final week of work, holiday pay, or notice pay when his employment ended.
The tribunal ruled in his favour last April, awarding him £1,826.50 in compensation.
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However, Rennison was unable to collect the compensation as Portofino had gone into liquidation.
Following media coverage of the tribunal, the DHSC launched an investigation which revealed that Rennison had been lying about his income streams.
When interviewed by the department in June 2024, Rennison admitted that his benefits didn't cover his living expenses, so he had been working.
The court heard that while the initial benefits claim was not dishonest, Rennison had failed to inform the department when his circumstances changed after obtaining work.
The case came to light after Rennison filed a tribunal claim against his former employer
Wikimedia CommonsHe initially pleaded not guilty to two counts of benefit fraud, but later changed his pleas to guilty.
On February 11, Deputy High Bailiff Rachael Braidwood said that there had been a reluctance on the defendant’s part to accept responsibility, and assessed him as having a high risk of reoffending.
She sentenced him to nine weeks’ custody for each count of the offence, to run concurrently, but suspended for two years.
He also must pay £300 prosecution costs at a rate of £5 per week, deducted from benefits.
The 55-year-old has already begun paying the amount back to the treasury at a rate of £20 per week.
