A FORMER Redditch resident has been fined and ordered to pay costs after he was convicted of benefit fraud.

The prosecution of Christopher Parker, 44, who now lives in Leicestershire, came about as a result of a joint investigation between Redditch Council and the Department for Work and Pensions.

He was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay costs of £575 by Redditch Magistrates on January 10, for failing to declare that he had been working for a local employment agency between October 2003 and March 2004 while claiming benefits.

Parker had obtained £1,706.36 in incapacity benefit, £579.94 housing benefit and £143.97 council tax benefit to which he was not entitled.

And as well as the fine and costs, a compensation order was made for the total amount of the benefits overpaid to be repaid to the relevant authorities.

He had previously appeared before the court for these offences on two occasions. At the first hearing, no plea was given as Mr Parker said he thought he had been abroad at the time of some of the work.

A not guilty plea was entered at the second hearing but was changed to guilty at the hearing on January 10 as further evidence had been obtained from Mr Parker's bank showing all of the wages had been paid into his account.

A council spokesman said: "The authority is committed to ensuring that benefits are paid to those entitled to them and will use powers allowed under legislation to bring prosecutions in appropriate cases."