A mother claimed more than £47,000 in benefits she wasn't entitled to, a court has heard.
Alana Urrutia, 36, appeared at Newport Crown Court on Thursday where she pleaded guilty to one count of benefit fraud and one count of dishonestly failing to notify of a change of circumstances.
The court was told the mother, of Kier Hardie Crescent, Newport, claimed the cash over a sustained period of time with the first claim having been made in September 2011.
Prosecutor James Evans told the court: "For a period from October 3, 2013, to February 17, 2014, she was living in Spain. She [then] moved to Spain from September 2014. She continued to receive income support, housing benefit, and child tax credits The total amount of overpayment was £47,172.77."
Mr Evans also told the court the defendant appeared before the courts last year for assaulting an emergency services worker. She was sentenced to a community order which the court heard she has still been working to complete.
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Ben Waters, mitigating, told the court the appropriate punishment was a suspended sentence.
Judge Michael Fitton QC said the defendant had "worked hard" to ensure the community order that was imposed last year was on track for completion.
It was also noted the defendant had been paying the money back "bit by bit" and this was considered when concluding the case.
Urrutia was handed a 33-week jail sentence which is to be suspended for 18 months. She was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work which will begin when she has completed her community order.
Judge Fitton said the unpaid work should be completed within the next 12 months and also ordered the defendant to pay a victim surcharge.
He told Urrutia: "I'm not going to go into detail about the mess your life is in. There have been problems with relationships, family, and the like." The judge said in future her focus should be placed on caring for her children and added: "What you do in the future will determine the rest of your life. It is your responsibility."
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