Praise over jail spell for South Staffordshire benefits fraudster

David Millward, who took livestock belonging to local farmers for sale at cattle markets while claiming to be so disabled he could only walk 10 metres, was locked up for 18 months at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Department of Work and Pensions Fraud Manager Mark Pickering said after the case: "The majority of people who claim benefits do so legitimately but this jail sentence sends out a strong message for those that do not."

Farmer's son Millward claimed to be unable to get into bed or tie his own shoe laces without help but was regularly seen herding up to six cattle at a time and standing unaided for four hours, the court heard.

The 55-year-old fraudster who lived in Oak Road, Brewood, and rented a 15-acre field in Coven channelled over £70,000 of the cash he secretly earned through the bank account of his daughter in a bid to escape detection, the court heard.

But Millward had sealed his own fate when he appeared unexpectedly on crutches during a court case while being prosecuted over the mistreatment of the carcasses of five calves in 2009.

This surprised staff from Staffordshire County Council's Trading Standards department who had never seen him have trouble moving about. They tipped off the Department of Work and Pensions, sparking an investigation.

Staffordshire County Council's communities leader Pat Corfield said: "This is a fine example of how different organisations can work together for the benefit of communities and bring people to justice who carry out criminal activities."

Millward pleaded guilty to illegally pocketing both income support and disability allowance between 2003 and 2011.

Judge Michael Challinor told him: "This was a cynical and planned crime. You claimed to be suffering from a series of illnesses when the truth was quite different."