A Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) employee has been sentenced to prison after exploiting pandemic-era rules to steal tens of thousands of pounds from the benefits system.
Exploiting a National Crisis for Personal Gain
Rafiq Master, an executive officer from London Walk in Blackburn, was responsible for processing Universal Credit claims. However, Preston Crown Court heard how he abused his position of trust to orchestrate a significant fraud. Master made a series of bogus claims, funnelling payments into the bank accounts of four individuals.
The scam came to light during an internal DWP investigation in 2021, leading to Master's dismissal. The scale of the attempted fraud was substantial, with investigators uncovering 51 claims made under 41 different names. Of these, 31 claims resulted in an actual fraudulent payment, totalling £50,000.
Innocent Claimants Unwittingly Involved
A particularly disturbing aspect of the case, highlighted in court, was that many claims were made using the identities of innocent people. These legitimate DWP claimants had no knowledge that their personal details were being used to facilitate Master's criminal activity.
Following the investigation, Master pleaded guilty to fraud. Sentencing him to 32 months in jail, the Honorary Recorder of Preston, Judge Robert Altham, condemned Master's actions. The judge noted that the fraud coincided with the Covid-19 pandemic, during which identification checks for benefits were relaxed to protect public health.
"An Unattractive Feature": Judge's Stern Rebuke
Judge Altham stated, "During the course of the fraud the covid pandemic occurred and you Mr Master benefited from a relaxation of the identification process. Prior to that identification would have to be verified face-to-face in a Jobcentre."
He added, "It is an unattractive feature of this case that you were benefiting from the pandemic when everyone else was suffering - and benefited from the relaxation of the rules to keep people safe." The judge was clear, however, that the fraud was not caused by the pandemic but was merely aided by the temporary changes.
Acknowledging that Master came from an "otherwise decent and law abiding family", Judge Altham emphasised that the seriousness of the offence demanded a custodial sentence. "This type of offending by a person in such a position is such that appropriate punishment can only be met with immediate custody," he concluded.
