A MOTHER-of-seven who cheated £94,000 of benefits and kept quiet about her partner moving in has been evicted from her home.
Cleo Embley, 37, was thrown out of her home in Bridge Street, Rishton, by her social landlord Hyndburn Homes.
Embley was jailed for 22 weeks in September after being caught out in the four-year scam following surveillance, Burnley Crown Court heard.
She had claimed Paul Harwood, father of six of her children, did not live with her permanently.
She admitted three counts of dishonestly failing to notify a change in circumstances to the Department for Work and Pens-ions, and Hyndburn Council, bet-ween February 2008 and March 2012.
Embley had also run into serious rent arrears, which she owed to Hyndburn Homes.
The social landlord evicted her because she owed significant rent arrears, and had illegally claimed benefits while living in the prop-erty.
Enforcement manager at Hynd-burn Homes, David Perry, said: “We feel that, as a social landlord, we have an obligation to act where tenants flout the law in this way.
“We need to send a message to those who feel they can commit criminal acts without sanction from their landlord.”
Embley has now been disqual-ified from applying for a new home through Hyndburn’s choice-based letting system, due to being ‘intent-ionally homeless’.
Shirley Faragher, from Forbes Sol- icitors, said “Forbes Solicitors are delighted to have achieved a pos-itive result for Hyndburn Homes in this case.
“The message is clear – if you commit benefit fraud, possession proceedings will be taken to evict you from your home.
“We hope that this case will deter other tenants from committing this type of offence while living in our client’s properties.”
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