A Lotto winner has been jailed for claiming benefits despite bagging £166,000.
Eric Burrows, 62, splashed his Postcode Lottery winnings on a £22,000 car, foreign trips, a £22,000 motorhome and gifts for his family.
He even posed for a publicity photo, holding his cheque while celebrating his win. But he continued to claim housing benefits and employment support allowance.
Swansea crown court heard he did not declare his prize because he thought it was “family money” and not his own.
Prosecutor Craig Jones said that Burrows won the money in 2015. But by November 2017, he had just £7,665 left.
Mr Jones said that Burrows, of Waunarlwydd, Swansea, was interviewed by investigators and admitted he had won the lottery.
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Burrows pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud totalling £20,157.65. He got six months’ jail.
Judge Keith Thomas said: “It was a deliberate and determined fraud.”
He added Burrows had shown “little or no remorse” .
