'Disabled' Barry woman claimed benefits - but ran in Race For Life (From Barry And District News)

'Disabled' Barry woman claimed benefits - but ran in Race For Life

7:40am Thursday 15th October 2009 in News By Sharon Harris

A BARRY woman who received almost £25,000 in benefits after claiming she was virtually unable to walk, was photographed in the gym and running the Race For Life, a court heard this week.

Susan Lynette Hutchinson, of Trinity Street, pleaded guilty to eight offences committed between 2002 and 2009, when she appeared at Barry Magistrates' Court yesterday (Wednesday, October 14).

She was accused of using multiple identities to fraudulently claim benefits amounting to £23,238.16, including Income Support and Disability Living Allowance (DLA).

Hutchinson, who also falsely claimed council tax benefit and housing benefit, had been assessed for DLA – a means of support reserved for the most severely disabled members of society, who are either unable to walk, or virtually unable to walk.

The 56-year-old had stated on her form that she couldn’t walk without using a stick, had difficulty walking 100 yards in 15 minutes, and was unable to do her own shopping.

But she was observed running across the 5km (3.1 mile) Race For Life finish line, with a group of friends, after also having walked some of the distance at the fundraising event in Cardiff's castle grounds on May 31 this year.

She also joined a local gym in 2007, where she was caught out on camera working out at 7am in contradiction to what she had claimed on her benefit form.

Hutchinson also claimed benefits while working as a carer at Lindisfarne Home, in Cardiff, using the surname Johnson and a different national insurance number, from July 2002 to September 2004.

And the court heard she worked as a personal assistant from January 2005 to July 2008, to a man who informed her she was under investigation, but died before investigators were able to gather all the information they required.

Prosecuting on behalf of the DWP, Colin Martin said the onus had been on Hutchinson to notify the agencies of any changes in circumstances, but she had failed to do so.

He said: "She said 'it didn’t occur to me'.

"Initially she denied using the name of Johnson, but then she said she used it so as not to be detected."

Magistrates told the defendant that the nature of the offences and the large sum of money involved meant she would need to be sentenced in a court with the ability to impose a greater sentence than could be given at Barry Magistrates Court.

She was granted unconditional bail, to appear at Cardiff Crown Court on Friday, November 13 for sentencing.