Worker claimed €4,000 in welfare

A man from Cameroon who was working for a hotel reservations company in Cork and fraudulently claiming over €4,000 in jobseeker’s allowance was sentenced to three months in prison yesterday.

Judge Olann Kelleher imposed that term on Antoine Herve Poll-Gouater, aged 33, who left Cameroon as a teenager, lived in France and came to Ireland six years ago and worked for a number of companies. He had been living at City Square, Ladyswell, Cork.

In 2010 he was working with a hotel reservations company based in Cork.

However, Declan O’Shea, officer of the minister for social protection, said at Cork District Court that the defendant was claiming the welfare allowance from Apr 26 to Aug 11, 2010, and from Sept 3 to Oct 13.

The accused pleaded guilty to five charges related to the fraudulent claiming of the allowance.

The total loss to the State as a result of his claims was put at a little over €4,000. He repaid €1,300 with €2,700 outstanding. The judge noted that this had been outstanding for some time and warrants had to be issued in a vain attempt to get the accused in court.

Defence solicitor Eddie Burke said previously that the defendant did not realise he was not entitled to the social welfare claim.

The latest evidence before Judge Kelleher was that the defendant was getting medical treatment in France. The judge noted that the defendant must have paid for that yet he was not repaying the €2,700 still owed.