Byline: RICHARD SMITH
A BENEFIT cheat has been jailed - after his son wrote an internet blog about the family's seven-month cruise in the Caribbean.
Lying dad-of-four Simon Daymond-Harris, 37, fiddled nearly pounds 29,000 in housing benefit over four years.
He was caught after investigators found the blog by his son Oliver - seven at the time.
The innocent youngster told how the family set sail on pounds 125,000 yacht The Sakida, which was owned by Daymond-Harris's parents.
His tell-tale blog came three months after his dad submitted the first bogus claim.
It revealed the family set sail for St Lucia in November 2006 and did not plan to return until the following October.
Daymond-Harris made the voyage with his wife and three children - the couple now have a fourth child. All except their eldest son returned in May 2007. A court heard how Daymond-Harris claimed pounds 560-a-month saying his pounds 90-a-week as a part-time barman was not enough to support the family. He claimed he was paying pounds 925-a-month rent on a luxury four-bedroom waterside apartment in Millbay Marina Village, Plymouth. But officials found the flat was owned by his parents and Daymond-Harris lived in the flat rent-free - illegally pocketing pounds 28,778.45 in benefits between 2006 and last year.
He told Plymouth magistrates: "I know this is very serious and I am very sorry. I can assure you I will not appear in court again. I cannot say why I did it. I just don't know." Jailing Daymond-Harris for 12 weeks, district judge Paul Farmer told him: "This was a deliberate fraud which was dealt with in a sophisticated way.
"Clearly it is appropriate that you and people like you are given a deterrent sentence."
Benefit paid into Daymond-Harris's account was used to cover withdrawals in the Caribbean - although he tried to pretend it was spent at retail outlet Trago Mills in Devon.
The court also heard that he was licensee of the pub where he claimed to be a barman.
Daymond-Harris admitted three charges of making a false statement to obtain benefit.
He revealed he had repaid all the money with a loan from his father.
A spokesman for Plymouth city council said after the case: "Benefit fraud is not a victimless crime. Those who obtain benefit fraudulently are stealing from their fellow citizens."
CAPTION(S):
SCAM On yacht with his family CONMAN Daymond-Harris lied to get payouts
No comments:
Post a Comment