Patricia Shirlene Dianna Hughes: Centrelink fraudster rorted $200,000 by ‘double dip’ con
Centrelink Fraudster Stole $200,000 Using Fake Name to ‘Double’ Benefits — And You Won’t Believe How She Was Caught
- Conwoman stole just under $200,000 from Centerlink over 12 years
- Patricia Hughes used Valentine Fox’s alias to ‘double’ Social Security benefits
A Centrelink fraudster fraudulently claimed nearly $200,000 in benefits — only to be caught after the house burned down.
Patricia Shirlene Dianna Hughes, 47, used the false alias, Valentine Fox, to ‘double’ Social Security benefits between 2005 and 2017, but it all came loose when a fire broke out at her home in Myponga, south of Adelaide.
Hughes used the alias to file a “multiplicity of claims” over a 12-year period to receive approximately $190,000 in illegitimate benefit claims.
Centrelink came on the trail after there was a ‘suggestion from another person’ in the house after the fire, which led to an investigation into Hughes’ benefit claims.
She appeared before Adelaide District Court on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to obtaining and attempting to obtain a financial advantage by deception.
A con artist stole just under $200,000 Centrelink using a fake alias to double Social Security benefits over a 12-year period, only to be found after her home burned down
The court heard that Hughes had received both legitimate assistance and an estimated $1,200 a month in illegal payments.
Her attorney Paul Charman said the offending was partly due to her being coerced by others close to her, according to The advertiser
Those who led her to perpetuate the fraud had direct control over social benefits, Mr Charman said.
However, he noted that “there’s no way she (Hughes) is running away from her guilt, her responsibility, her guilt.”
Mr Charman also said that the money was not used to fund an extravagant lifestyle, but was instead used for everyday living expenses such as food and petrol.
A forensic psychologist diagnosed Hughes with complex post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from a dysfunctional upbringing.
The disorder had left her in an “almost catastrophically damaged psychological state,” Mr Charman said.
The Adelaide District Court (pictured) heard Patricia Shirlene Dianna Hughes cheating was discovered after another person, her alias, was not found in the house after the fire
Hughes has been trying to sell her partially burned home, on which she still owes more than $200,000 in mortgage payments, to cover the $190,000 to the Commonwealth.
Mr Charman said that in the event the house is sold, any money left over will be returned to Centrelink.
Due to her damaged mental state, Hughes has barely left her home and has been left “frozen to go to jail.”
She will be sentenced next month.