Corkman gets 3.5 years for defrauding the State (Other taxpayers) of over €500,000. That’s bad, but also reported that he was claiming Jobseekers(sic) for some 30 years??? How mad it that? One really must wonder what the SW staff were doing for this fraud to go undetected for so long.
Welfare Fraud Case
- Thread starter Conan
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You're right Conan, however some years ago when some Dept Social Welfare staff went after some suspected abuse of the system they were verbally attacked by some politicians. Even in my day as a low grade civil servant when I went after what I thought was abuse of the system I was continuously steered away from confrontation where some managers hoped some hints would stop the fraudulent claims. Interesting that a custodial sentence of 4.5 years was imposed with one year suspended. But, the tough message was sent out by the judge. Circa €530,000.00 involved. Add in cost of free legal aid.
Unrelated but relevant I'm thinking of two solicitors being sentenced to prison of about 1.5 years for using PRSI numbers of some down-and-outs. One of the solicitors didn't serve even one day in jail. Compared to my first paragraph this appears ultra lenient.
On the same newspaper yesterday, I read of a sports person allegedly scamming people with a story of a "friendly vulture fund" and again circa €500,000.00 at least was involved. I understand this case is not yet fully investigated.
Sooner or later some people will collate amounts of scams versus prison sentences (or no prison sentences) and I think there is much more to come.
Unrelated but relevant I'm thinking of two solicitors being sentenced to prison of about 1.5 years for using PRSI numbers of some down-and-outs. One of the solicitors didn't serve even one day in jail. Compared to my first paragraph this appears ultra lenient.
On the same newspaper yesterday, I read of a sports person allegedly scamming people with a story of a "friendly vulture fund" and again circa €500,000.00 at least was involved. I understand this case is not yet fully investigated.
Sooner or later some people will collate amounts of scams versus prison sentences (or no prison sentences) and I think there is much more to come.
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Duke of Marmalade
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I think the problem with collating scams is what about the ones that are not found out? If it needs you to claim a centenary bonus or actually bring a corpse into the PO to get caught then it seems to me the ones that are found out are the tip of an iceberg.
I think those solicitors got 2 and 4 years.
Yep one of the solicitors got 4 years (and I think he is still serving time); the other was released from prison to a step down facility less than 3 months after beginning her sentence of 2 years.
Interesting true story too and you could do worse than reading it (truth stranger than fiction):-
Former Fine Gael candidate Lyndsey Clarke is out of jail and now based at a ‘step-down’ facility
A former solicitor and Fine Gael election candidate, jailed for two years in February for a string of fraud offences, has been moved from prison to a “step-down facility” in Dublin in preparation for her release from custody.
www.independent.ie
And An Post staff. Why do some welfare recipients never have to present in person to collect their money?
Why are PPS numbers not submitted by Undertakers to the Dept SW before burials happen?
This man also had a child and partner (current or ex, I'm not sure) in Thailand and he made regular trips to visit them. Why aren't PPS numbers collected when leaving/entering the country and cross referenced to Dept SW files? Is children's allowance paid in instances like this, outside of the EU?
Donal O'Callaghan, aged 59, has spent over 30 years on Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA).
He has meant to be looking for work for over 30 years.
So far he hasn't managed to find a job.
We had the Celtic Tiger from 1993/94 to 2008, thousand of jobs created, loads of people came from eastern Europe.
Yet Donal still couldn't find a job.
I have a few queries:
(1) Should there be a time-limit on JSA?
(2) I thought people on JSA were called into SeeTec or Turas Nua, to help them find jobs?
He has meant to be looking for work for over 30 years.
So far he hasn't managed to find a job.
We had the Celtic Tiger from 1993/94 to 2008, thousand of jobs created, loads of people came from eastern Europe.
Yet Donal still couldn't find a job.
I have a few queries:
(1) Should there be a time-limit on JSA?
(2) I thought people on JSA were called into SeeTec or Turas Nua, to help them find jobs?
But sure why would he look for a job if he was getting JSA plus two State Pensions? For those on JSA, the local SW office are supposed to put them forward for job vacancies. Hard to understand how he stayed on JSA for 30 years.
Doubt-Ya Purple Boy! And don't forget the types who fake their earnings to avail of 3rd Level Grants for their darlings. And how many although working are still availing of the PUP?
Agreed, and how many of us, over the years, have paid cash to get a job done to the car or around the house as opposed to asking for a proper invoice with a VAT number etc on it?
Interesting article in the weekend's Cork Examiner about this case, he forged signatures and photos to get past the SW/An Post bureaucracy (all of this was reported in Court) and then when he collected, walked across the road to Paddy Powers and deposited most of the money there. Credit to the Garda who walked the cemetaries in Cork until he found the family headstone.
Yep, "he is without sin" and all that. It doesn't make it right though, or excusable.
Addicts do what they need to do to feed their habit.
That's what I found amazing. You'd think deaths would have to be registered or some such thing...
I know when my own Dad died, (and this is going back 8 years so it may have changed) but given the fact that funerals happen so quickly in Ireland, he was buried before the death was formally registered. Yes, we got the Death notification letter from the hospital and then I had to go to the Registrar afterwards to complete the registration to sort out all the bureaucracy for my Mam but that was the week after the funeral. What would happen if I didn't do it? Would I get chased up?
You'd think that the doctor would sign a death cert and it would go somewhere and something else would happen.
Doctors / hosp may issue Death Cert, but it is up to family to register the death with the GRO.
They have three months to do so.
In this case, it looks like the son did not register the death.
This also explains why death data related to COVID is late in Ireland, because we let families have three months to register a death.
It is a bit loose, yes.
They have three months to do so.
In this case, it looks like the son did not register the death.
This also explains why death data related to COVID is late in Ireland, because we let families have three months to register a death.
It is a bit loose, yes.
I'd say it's more than a bit loose.
NoRegretsCoyote
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The fraud was hugely facilitated by the fact that he had the same name as his deceased father.
I suspect that the protocols for cross-checking registered deaths against claims were not as good in the late 1980s as now.