Man sentenced for sub-letting council flat
A man who sub-let his one bedroom council home to unsuspecting tenants and actually lived more than 100 miles away, has been sentenced by magistrates.
Michael Roberts was the legitimate tenant of the flat in Mead Close, Langley, and applied to purchase the property under the right to by scheme.
However, concerns were raised that it was not his main home and during an investigation by the council’s corporate fraud team into whether the 34-year-old was entitled to purchase the property. It was then discovered he had illegally rented it out to four people over a three year period.
During a trial at Reading Magistrates’ Court in November the bench heard he was in fact living 140miles away in Nottingham with the mother of his two children and had used that Nottinghamshire address to claim Child Tax Credits.
Between July 2013 and February 2016 he had four separate tenants, two of whom had paid deposits and rent payments directly into his bank account. A third tenant had been shocked to discover that he was in fact a sub-tenant in a council property during a visit by council officers in June 2015 just a week after he had moved in and redecorated. He moved out almost immediately after recovering his deposit from Mr Roberts.
Mr Roberts represented himself during the trial and claimed the rental payments deposited into his bank account were actually commission payments for work.
He was convicted on 25 November of one count of fraud by failing to disclose information he was under a legal duty to disclose between 31 July 2013 and 14 October 2013, contrary to section 3 of the Fraud Act and a second offence of illegally sub-letting the flat between 15/10/2013 and 21/2/2016 contrary to the Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013.
Mr Roberts was sentenced on 13 December at the same court to a 12 month community order and ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £1,250 plus a £60 victim surcharge.
Cllr Pavitar K Mann, cabinet member for planning and regulation, said: “Due to this conviction, Mr Roberts has lost his secure tenancy status, along with his right-to-buy.
“Steps will now be taken to recover the property so that it can be allocated to someone in genuine need who won’t abuse the privilege.
“There is a need for social housing in the borough and this person used it for their own gain at the detriment to those who actually needed it.
“We will always prosecute those who do not act responsibly and what a great job council officers did to investigate this through to a conviction.”
Michael Roberts was the legitimate tenant of the flat in Mead Close, Langley, and applied to purchase the property under the right to by scheme.
However, concerns were raised that it was not his main home and during an investigation by the council’s corporate fraud team into whether the 34-year-old was entitled to purchase the property. It was then discovered he had illegally rented it out to four people over a three year period.
During a trial at Reading Magistrates’ Court in November the bench heard he was in fact living 140miles away in Nottingham with the mother of his two children and had used that Nottinghamshire address to claim Child Tax Credits.
Between July 2013 and February 2016 he had four separate tenants, two of whom had paid deposits and rent payments directly into his bank account. A third tenant had been shocked to discover that he was in fact a sub-tenant in a council property during a visit by council officers in June 2015 just a week after he had moved in and redecorated. He moved out almost immediately after recovering his deposit from Mr Roberts.
Mr Roberts represented himself during the trial and claimed the rental payments deposited into his bank account were actually commission payments for work.
He was convicted on 25 November of one count of fraud by failing to disclose information he was under a legal duty to disclose between 31 July 2013 and 14 October 2013, contrary to section 3 of the Fraud Act and a second offence of illegally sub-letting the flat between 15/10/2013 and 21/2/2016 contrary to the Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013.
Mr Roberts was sentenced on 13 December at the same court to a 12 month community order and ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay prosecution costs of £1,250 plus a £60 victim surcharge.
Cllr Pavitar K Mann, cabinet member for planning and regulation, said: “Due to this conviction, Mr Roberts has lost his secure tenancy status, along with his right-to-buy.
“Steps will now be taken to recover the property so that it can be allocated to someone in genuine need who won’t abuse the privilege.
“There is a need for social housing in the borough and this person used it for their own gain at the detriment to those who actually needed it.
“We will always prosecute those who do not act responsibly and what a great job council officers did to investigate this through to a conviction.”
