An offender has been sentenced to 140 hours community service for a £9,179 benefit fraud.

Loryn Walker pleaded guilty to 12 counts of benefit fraud after she failed to declare maintenance payments she was receiving.

The court heard that she has already started paying back the benefit money at a rate of £200 per month via an agreement made with the Treasury.

We previously reported that Walker, who is 31 and lives at Lhon Dhoo Close, Onchan, was claiming Employed Person’s Allowance (EPA) and signed forms declaring she was not receiving any maintenance payments for her child.

However, during periods between November 2018 and May 2022, she had been receiving money from her former partner.

In March 2021, Walker also submitted a claim for Manx Earnings Replacement Allowance (MERA), saying that her last earnings were received on March 23.

However, it was found that she had received further earnings on March 25 and April 29.

Mr Swain said that this had resulted in an overpayment in benefits of £7,435 relating to EPA and £1,744 under the MERA.

Defence advocate David Reynolds asked for credit to be given for his client’s guilty pleas and said that her benefit claim had not been fraudulent from the outset.

‘Ms Walker has been open and frank when interviewed and has taken full responsibility for her offending,’ said the advocate.

Mr Reynolds said that Walker had said that the maintenance payments had been sporadic, which had caused her difficulties, but it was no longer an issue.

The advocate asked the court to consider the article eight human rights of Walker’s two children, as she had had a second child six months ago.

Prosecuting advocate Peter Connick disputed that the maintenance payments had been sporadic, saying that a total of £8,320 had been received by Walker via regular payments, but said that it would not make a difference to sentencing.

A probation report assessed her as a low risk of reoffending and of harm to others.

High Bailiff Jayne Hughes sentenced Walker to 140 hours community service for each of the 12 counts of the offence, but all to run concurrently.

The High Bailiff told Walker: ‘You were paid the money over a period of three and a half years.

‘It was committed during the pandemic where there was a great draw on public money.’

She also ordered the defendant to pay £100 prosecution costs at a rate of £20 per week.