Benefits cheat jailed after being spotted on BBC trek

A MAN who told benefits officials he was severely disabled has been jailed after he was spotted taking part in a gruelling desert trek on television.

Karl Sacks, 48, was jailed for 10 weeks after his scam was uncovered following his appearance on BBC2 documentary Beyond Boundaries.

The father-of-three, who pleaded guilty to five counts of benefit fraud totalling over 40,000 by claiming for severe disability allowance was involved in a coast-to-coast trek across the Nicaraguan desert on the show in 2005.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Those taking part were challenged to abseil, climb and sail their way across 220 miles of swamps, lakes, desert and jungle, pushing and pulling two wheelchair users up and down muddy ravines and even a 5,000ft volcano.

Sacks, who lost part of his leg in a shark diving trip in 1995, also claimed for severe disability allowance while dealing in luxury cars.

He also profited from the sale of property.

Michael Rawlinson, prosecuting, told Leeds Crown Court that Sacks, of Alwoodley, Leeds, came to the attention of the Department of Work and Pensions after embarking on his trip to Nicaragua.

Benefits bosses judged he had failed to notify them of his increased mobility and had been overpaid disability living allowance of 6,300.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He also failed to notify them of a change in circumstances when he worked buying and selling prestige cars, enabling him to pocket a further 4,375.

Mr Rawlinson said Sacks was also overpaid 29,972 in income support, with the total fraud claimed illegally over seven-and-a-half years amounting to 40,600.

The offences came to light after an investigation was launched into the amounts of money passing through Sacks's wife's bank account, the hearing was told.

Leeds Crown Court heard he was able to put down a deposit for a 102,000 house, which was then sold for 180,000 in 2005. He was also able to put down a 30,000 deposit on his current 212,000 home on Belvedere Road, Alwoodley.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jailing him, Judge Geoffrey Marson told Sacks: "You (were] a man of good character until you committed these offences.

"On the other side of the coin you have dishonestly obtained for yourself over 40,000 of public money – money to which others were entitled and you were not.

"It is quite impossible to pass over this offending in any way other than an immediate custodial sentence."

Joseph Ganner, mitigating, told the hearing: "The defendant is fully aware of the serious view the court takes of this kind of offending."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Referring to his TV appearance, he said: "From what he told me it was blatantly obvious that he would be detected.

"He was star-struck and gave no proper thought to what he was doing. He acted in a way that was ill-judged and he bitterly regrets that now."

Mr Ganner said Sacks bought and sold cars, believing he was taking advantage of a loophole because revenue and customs guidance documents had not declared it a criminal matter.

He told the hearing at Leeds Crown Court that Sacks planned to find work to pay off the money he had defrauded.

Related topics: