Man who commuted from Thailand to claim €248k in welfare scam jailed

AN IRISHMAN who lived in Thailand and returned home every three months, using a series of different names to fraudulently claim €248,000 in welfare payments over an eight-year period, has been jailed for 12-and-a-half years.

Paul Murray, 63, of no fixed abode, said he carried out what the court heard was an audacious and breathtaking crime because the money was “easy to access”.

At Mullingar District court yesterday, Judge Anthony Kennedy imposed a six-month sentence for each of 25 sample theft charges and a concurrent sentence of three years for possession of a false passport.