Extended family suspected of defrauding state of €1m

GARDAÍ and social welfare inspectors have pounced on an extended family suspected of fraudulently claiming over €1 million from the state.

Investigations suggest up to 16 members of a settled Traveller family have claimed a range of benefits averaging €50,000 a year.

In a statement, a Garda spokesman said: “As part of an ongoing investigation into fraudulent welfare claims, detectives from the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation and Inspectors from the Department of Social Protection searched a number of houses in the north and west Dublin areas this morning.”

Searches were carried out at homes in Swords and Balbriggan in north Dublin, Clondalkin and Blanchardstown in west Dublin as well as Newbridge in Co Kildare.

Five members of the extended family were arrested: three males, aged in their late teens, 20s and 30s, and two females aged in their 20s and 40s.

Members of the family are suspected of fraudulently claiming unemployment benefit, child support and associated welfare payments both here and in Britain.

In some cases false identities were used and claims were also made for children who were not those of the claimant.

One individual is thought to have claimed up to €100,000 in unemployment and child benefits. Under a false name he claimed for six children, four more than he actually has.

Another man is suspected of claiming unemployment benefit both for himself and his brother, who did the same in Britain.

The department’s annual report, published earlier in the week, showed that it carried out 929,000 “control reviews” of schemes it was operating and that these generated about €483m in payments that should not have been made.

Of that total, €107.6m came from child benefit claims, €94.6m from illness schemes, €83.3m from state pension schemes, and €71.5m from one-parent family payments.

The department took 209 criminal and nine civil cases to the Chief State Solicitor’s office for the initiation of court proceedings. It also referred a further 132 cases of “personation” to gardaí.

Some 254 people were successfully prosecuted with eight imprisoned, 16 given suspended sentences and 165 fined.

Two people appeared in court yesterday in connection with the suspected fraud case. A man in his mid-30s and a woman in her 40s were released on bail to re-appear next week at the Dublin District Court.

A man, 19, is due to appear at Blanchardstown District Court at 10.30am today. A man and a woman, have been released without charge and a file will be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.