29 Aug, 2014 @ 12:49
1 min read

Fraudster claims over £55,000 in benefits despite Spanish property empire

Benefit cheat

A BENEFITS cheat has walked free from court after stealing more than £55,000 (€69,000) by hiding her Spanish property empire.

Despite being found guilty of seven charges Donna Tithecott, 54, from Lifton in Devon, avoided a prison sentence and is now expected to take 130 years to pay off the debt at a payment rate of just £7.50 (€9.45) a week. 

Exeter Crown Court found Tithecott guilty of all charges relating to dishonest representation after she failed to inform authorities she part-owned three Spanish properties.

With the authorities unaware of her assets, Tithecott racked up a total of £55,726 (€70,179) in claims for housing benefit, council tax and income support.

The court heard that the properties were bought by her ex-husband – who she never lived with – using money he had borrowed from her and as a result her name was on the deeds.

However defence lawyer Paul Grumbar said that Tithecott did not benefit from these deals and did not put any money in or take anything out of them.

Judge Cottle summed the case up as an ‘odd’ situation and agreed with the defence that Tithecott did not benefit from the property but ordered her to repay the debt.

Rob Horgan

DO YOU HAVE NEWS FOR US at Spain’s most popular English newspaper - the Olive Press? Contact us now via email: newsdesk@theolivepress.es or call 951 273 575. To contact the newsdesk out of regular office hours please call +34 665 798 618.

4 Comments

  1. Definitely more to this than meets the eye. A husband she never lived with?? Her name “appearing” on deeds? No financial benefit accruing to her? Come on O.P. you can do better than this. Give us the inside grift!

  2. was this Husband perhaps not a UK or EU national
    was this a marriage of convenience

    Who owns these properties
    How do they know she never benefitted from the properties
    does she have some money in an offshore account
    or perhaps in another name

    could this report not of provided a few more basic
    details

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Valverde win
Previous Story

Vuelta a Espana: Valverde wins stage to claim the red jersey

music promoter e
Next Story

Spanish music promoter has a dig at finance minister from beyond the grave

Latest from Lead

Go toTop

More From The Olive Press