A BENEFITS fraudster landed himself a court bill of more than £800 after appearing before Worcester Magistrates Court.

Andrew Tomkotowicz faced three charges of benefit fraud. Magistrates fined him £50 and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £393.09 on Monday after he pleaded guilty to cashing three benefit cheques totalling £375.76.

The court heard that the cash had been paid to him after he had left a Sidbury address on which he had been claiming housing benefit since March 2001.

The 38-year-old, who is now living in Evesham, failed to attend to answer charges of benefit fraud when summonsed last November.

Previously, Wendy Rushton, prosecuting solicitor for Worcester City Council, said the jobless defendant had claimed £46.97 a week housing benefit for an address in Sidbury.

In January 2002, the city council's benefits team discovered the defendant was also being paid housing benefit and Job Seekers Allowance from a Martley address.

Investigations

Further investigations by the team revealed that Tomkotowicz had vacated the Worcester property several months earlier, but regularly returned to collect his post, which included his fortnightly giro cheque for housing benefit from the council.

"When he was later cautioned by officers of Worcester City Council, Mr Tomkotowicz confirmed he had continued to cash the giro cheques totalling £375.76 at Sidbury Post Office after he had moved out of the city," said Mrs Rushton.

"As a result he was found to have been overpaid housing benefit in the sum of £375.76 for the period Thursday, November 12 2001 to Sunday, January 6, 2002."

Tomkotowicz, of New Road, Hampton, claimed that he had made "a genuine mistake" when cashing the cheques to which, he said, he thought he was entitled.

He added he had made "no personal gain" from the overpaid cheques.