A benefit fraudster who used council tax and housing benefits to buy a Mercedes Benz will have to repay the thousands of pounds he stole after a successful prosecution by Islington Council. <br><br>Faizur Rahman Chowdhury, formerly of Formby Court, London, was ordered to repay almost £15,000 after admitting that he failed to tell council officers that he had moved house.<br><br>The court heard that Chowdhury had been claiming housing and council tax benefits from an address at Formby Court since July 2001, but also been registered for council tax and business rates at an address in Cambridge. <br><br>Chowdhury, who had been running a restaurant from a property in Mill Lane, Cambridge, had given this address as his home address when applying for two credit cards and when taking out a loan for a Mercedes-Benz.<br><br>Over approximately 21 months, almost £10,000 of this loan had been repaid. During this period, the only credits to Chowdhury's account were his retirement pension and income support.<br><br>Officers became suspicious when the defendant delayed collecting a new key fob from the local area housing office after a new security system had been installed on communal door. He gave officers a Cambridge contact telephone number, which was traced by Islington Council's benefit investigators to the Mill Road address.<br> <br>The bench at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court sentenced Chowdhury to a two year community rehabilitation order and ordered him to repay £14,857.32 and £1,000 in costs. <br><br>Cllr Jyoti Vaja, Executive Member for housing and community safety said: “Individuals who swindle money are cheating residents out of valuable public services and facilities for their personal gain. This conviction sends out a clear message that we will not tolerate those who flout the law in this way.”<br>ENDS
Page Last Updated: 17 December 2009