A convicted benefits fraudster managed to land a job processing Universal Credit claims – despite swindling £50,000.
Chido Vincent was sent to prison in 2014 for 18 months for overstaying his visa and using a forged letter to claim benefits.
However, the Nigerian national was still given a job at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in Leeds last year.
It is now understood that he has been dismissed from his role for reasons unrelated to his conviction.
Vincent claims he was not required to disclose his conviction – because it was longer than five years ago.
“During the recruitment process I was asked everything and I answered honestly,” he told The Sun.
“They asked for my passport, right-to-work documents – I gave them everything.
“They said they needed to do a DBS. I gave them all the information and it came back fine, so I got the job.”
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The 57-year-old said he “did what was asked of me”, which included not declaring a conviction.
He added that as the crime happened 10 years ago, his conviction “was considered spent”.
It comes after a judge told a court that an Albanian driving test fraudster cannot be jailed because the prisons “are full to bursting”.
Judge James House KC said Elidjan Aliaj should be sent to prison for paying an impersonator to take his driving test.
The Nigerian national was still given a job at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in Leeds last year
PA
The 30-year-old was instead sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment, suspended for 18 months.
Aliaj was told by the judge that he “deserved to go to jail”
However, he could not be sent “because His Majesty’s prisons are currently full to bursting”.
