UK Lottery winner jailed for benefit fraud

Jul 24, 2012, 10:13 am (13 comments)

UK National Lottery

A man who won nearly £5 million (US$7.8 million) in the UK National Lottery, but fraudulently claimed about £13,000 (US$20,200) in benefits, has been jailed for nine months.

Edward Putman, 46, who was convicted of rape in 1993, won the life-changing sum in September 2009.

But he continued applying for housing benefit and income support and even wrote to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and his local council claiming he was broke and could not even afford to eat.

In reality he was splashing out on two sports cars and a new house.

Today at St Albans Crown Court, after admitting two counts of benefit fraud, he was jailed by Judge Andrew Bright QC.

The judge described Putman's fraudulent claims as "a pack of lies from start to finish" and said his letters to the authorities were "as calculated a piece of deception as anyone could imagine".

The judge told Putman he was "motivated by sheer greed" and continued to claim despite winning millions.

"It was greed on a scale which, frankly, defies belief, especially in an economic climate when welfare budgets are being cut and those who are properly entitled are struggling to make ends meet."

Judge Bright said Putman's fraudulent claims, which spanned 20 months, were so serious and his "culpability so grave" that Sentencing Guidelines Council advice about punishment has "little application to a case like this".

Putman, who was also ordered to pay £425 prosecution costs, began receiving income support in 2000 on the basis of being incapacitated by anxiety.

In order to do so he needed proof from his doctor of his mental health problems and signed a document confirming that he would notify the authorities if his condition changed.

But when he failed to attend a medical check-up in 2009, his benefits were suspended, before being officially ended in April the following year.

In July 2010, 10 months after being made a millionaire by his lottery win, he wrote to the DWP, begging them to reinstate his benefits.

He claimed he did not attend the medical examination because he was too ill.

"I lost a lot of weight and had lot to deal with," wrote Putman, of Station Road, Kings Langley, Hertfordshire.

"I didn't know whether I would still be alive. I'm on the brink of being evicted."

He also wrote to Dacorum Borough Council saying that he had been forced to survive on handouts from his family and friends, and had not been able to pay his council tax or rent, apart from putting £200 towards it, which he had borrowed from his family.

His benefits were then reinstated and were also back-dated, as he had asked them to be, to January 2010.

But that October the authorities became suspicious when Putman tried to buy his council house with £84,000 in cash.

Putman claimed he wanted to pay in cash because he did not have a bank account, but when the case was referred to Watford Fraud Section it was discovered that he did have one with £100,000 in it.

Detectives soon found the fraudster also had an account with St James's Bank - the bank recommended to lottery winners by operator Camelot.

Its records showed that, on September 10 2009, two large sums of cash were paid into his account with them - one for just over £2.5 million, and the other for £2.4 million, the court heard.

Putman's barrister Paul Millan said he repaid the money before pleading guilty at a magistrates court.

Putman claimed a total of £4,809 from Dacorum Borough Council between September 2009 and October 2010 for housing and council tax benefit, and £8,033 from the DWP between September 2009 and May last year.

Outside court, Sherri Bexon-Morgan, a DWP investigator, said "hard working families across the country" would be outraged by Putman.

News story photo(Click to display in gallery)

PA

Comments

mcginnin56

Hey I think this guy qualifies to join the exclusive Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme club!!!

Cletu$2's avatarCletu$2

He only got 9 months in jail?Who says that crime doesn't pay!?

zinniagirl's avatarzinniagirl

It never ceases to amaze me, how people never learn to live within their means.   It seems like most people want to be grasshoppers instead of ants.   They want to take while they can and not depend of themselves to provide for their own happiness and welfare.

savagegoose's avatarsavagegoose

hey its part of socialist mentality, if theres a handout everone needs to apply for it.

here, a leader of a political party didnt pay for his medical visits because of socialized welfare ,and the benefit was avail why shoudnt he?

 

oyther pollies, have a stamp allowence, for posting out mail ea  year. you got it, every single 1 claims the max stamp allowence, weather or not they post out any letters, because its avail and there to be taken,. only a moron wouldnt take it right?  or maybe only a polly with morals!

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

Typical cheapskate. They can't really help it. It's in their DNA.

dallascowboyfan's avatardallascowboyfan

Sorry no good ---

VenomV12

Instead of putting him in jail and spending more money on him, I would have charged him 10 times what he took. That is what he truly deserved.

kapla

Quote: Originally posted by VenomV12 on Jul 26, 2012

Instead of putting him in jail and spending more money on him, I would have charged him 10 times what he took. That is what he truly deserved.

Do BOTH Jail him and BILL him for the cost of him being in Jail. 

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by kapla on Jul 26, 2012

Do BOTH Jail him and BILL him for the cost of him being in Jail. 

Bill him first, then save the taxpayers more money, by just kicking him off the court building.

Waiting hungry vultures and hyenas will finish him off, no waste, no fuss, no mess. Happy ending.  Smiley

 

hearsetrax's avatarhearsetrax

Quote: Originally posted by mcginnin56 on Jul 26, 2012

Bill him first, then save the taxpayers more money, by just kicking him off the court building.

Waiting hungry vultures and hyenas will finish him off, no waste, no fuss, no mess. Happy ending.  Smiley

 

LOL I prefer a good old fashion funeral pyre and then bill his next of kin

mcginnin56

Quote: Originally posted by hearsetrax on Jul 26, 2012

LOL I prefer a good old fashion funeral pyre and then bill his next of kin

Whoops, how inconsiderate of me!!!.....have to spread the wealth and stimulate all possible sectors of our economy.

 

The finest and most expensive, burled polished, imported cherry casket. A small legion of "official mourners",  Crying    and let us say a budget which

allows $50,000 of only the finest wilted Lillie's.

 

This is assuming the vultures and hyenas still get their dinner, the scraps would get put into a doggie bag, then transported to the awaiting casket.

 

miracleplay5's avatarmiracleplay5

This guy is a rapist..but he's claiming to suffer from anxiety...rapists should get life imprisonment without the possibility of parole..in essence they are murderers...some rape victims are never the same...this whole story is sick and twisted...his winnings shouldve gone to the victim/s(restitution)..ugh im so disgusted by this filth...acts like rape, sexual assualt period make me wish this country, his country, well basically the whole world used torture as a punishment...torture the convicted to death..that will save alot of money too..and instead of paying someone to funeralize these despicable people throw them in the ocean so the sharks can have a nice dinner...yeah I know we have all sinned and come short but child molestation and sexual assault period is unacceptable and should have cruel and unusual punishments like TORTURE!!! smh...ugh

tntea's avatartntea

WOW!Eek

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