Four people from a larger group fished out in a benefits fraud investigation triggered by suspicious medical certificates whereby applicants claimed to be suffering from epilepsy were sentenced on Wednesday. 

The case first came to light when 17 applicants were charged in court under summons following investigations by the police economic crimes unit after the matter was flagged by the Social Services Department. 

Suspicions surfaced in September during regular checks by officers at the Income Support and Compliance Division within the Ministry for Social Policy and Children’s Rights who noticed that a number of certificates bore certain similarities. 

Each applicant claimed to be suffering from epilepsy and applied for a severe disability allowance which last year worked out into a weekly allowance of €109.52 payable in advance on a four-weekly basis. 

Every certificate was phrased in similar terms and was signed and stamped by a neurology consultant who subsequently told the police he had never examined those patients. 

He also confirmed that the stamp and signature on those certificates were false.

As investigators dug deeper, they discovered that all those applicants were in possession of a valid driving licence, despite the fact that persons suffering from epilepsy are not supposed to have one. 

In the majority of cases, immediate action by the department ensured that the applications were blocked before any funds were paid out. 

Charges were issued against 17 individuals, some of whom pleaded guilty at the first hearing and were sentenced recently.

Four others were handed judgment on Wednesday. 

A man who registered an early admission and had a clean record sheet, was handed a two-year sentence suspended for four years and was ordered to refund the department €1,171.05 within six months.

Two other men, who admitted to attempted fraud, were handed a 13-month jail term suspended for two years. 

The fourth man was placed under a two-year probation order since he had also breached a previous conditional discharge when committing the social benefits fraud. 

He was also fined €250 for breaching the court order delivered in May 2022. 

In all of the cases, the court, presided over by Magistrate Gabriella Vella, did not order confiscation of the items involved in the fraud, since those could be needed in evidence in ongoing proceedings against third parties. 

Inspectors Wayne Borg and Andy Rotin prosecuted. Lawyers José Herrera and Matthew Xuereb were defence counsel.