Former BBC presenter guilty of £65k benefits fraud

Ann Salter, a 49-year-old TV and radio presenter, who has worked as a guest presenter on BBC Radio 4, and BBC Radio 5, has pleaded guilty to falsely claiming £65,000 in benefits. She had claimed that her depression left her unable to work, but was caught after posting a CV online, and admitted to having committed benefit fraud.

The Daily Mail reported that her CV listed off her work for the radio stations, as well as TV work with Channel 5, Sky Sports, The Travel Channel and Senanta Sports. It also said she worked at fashion shows and helped host car launches in Cannes.

There is no suggestion that any of the work featured on her CV was done while she was claiming benefits, as it is unclear what work she was carrying out while on benefits.

The Daily Mirror reported that at the time, the Shepperton-based presenter had told the government that she was unable to work because of depression, and she had been claiming benefits. Since 2005 she received more than £30,000 in housing benefit, £28,000 in income support and £7,000 in council tax benefit.

She pleaded guilty and will be sentenced later this month. She has repaid £35,000 of the money and will need to repay all of the rest.
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Caught committing fraud

Clearly by posting an online CV at the time she was claiming benefits means that Salter is unlikely to enter the criminal mastermind hall of fame. However, she is far from the only benefit fraudster to have made an odd mistake which led to their arrest.

There was Caroline Banana, a 40-year-old from Bentilee, who won £95,000 on the TV programme Deal Or No Deal, in 2011, and chose not to declare it to the Department of Work and Pensions. After the show aired, an anonymous tip off led the DWP to investigate, and it discovered she had fraudulently claimed just over £6,000 in benefits after wining the money. She was sentenced to 215 hours of unpaid work.

Then there was a 58-year-old from Bishop Auckland, who was jailed last year for claiming almost £90,000 in benefits - including disability benefits - while working as a gym instructor.

Also last year there was the Hampshire man who was ordered to repay over £300,000 and jailed for four years, after being found guilty of benefit fraud of £100,000. He claimed to be disabled and to be cared for by a number of professionals, but the council became suspicious after noting that one of them was called D Duck, another was P Shiltern, and a third was D Thompson.

And finally, in August 2012, 53-year-old John Anderson from Dundee was jailed after failing to disclose a £100,000 scratchcard win. He was sentenced for fraudulently claiming £6,000 in benefits after winning the money.

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