A woman who raked in £32,000 in benefits by claiming she was single mother was caught out when a friend wished her a happy anniversary on Facebook.

Margaret Grieve, 53, was jailed for nine months after fraudulently claiming the sum through working tax and child tax credits in just three years.

Dundee Sheriff Court heard how Grieve, who works for NHS Tayside at Ninewells Hospital in its sterile services department, had claimed to be a single mother who had separated from husband Frederick Grieve.

In reality she was still living with him and splitting the cost of shopping and looking after their children.

Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) investigators found Grieve's Facebook page had a profile picture of the pair together attending a ball in 2011. That year a friend had wished Grieve a happy anniversary on the page, with Grieve replying to thank them.

In a bid to stay out of jail, Grieve's lawyer said she had offered to pay the cash back at £120 a month, which would take over 20 years but a sheriff said: "Unfortunately for you, custody is inevitable."

Fiscal depute Eilidh Robertson told the court both Grieve and her husband had claimed they had split in 2002 when confronted as part of the probe.

She said: "As a result of intelligence received by DWP, an investigation into the accused and her lifestyle commenced.

"Frederick Grieve's car insurance was paid from the accused's bank account and the address linked to that account was the accused's.

"Some household bills including the council tax on the accused's home were paid from that account. Both were jointly liable for council tax there and no single person's discount was applied.

"When he took out AA membership in October 2011 the address was given as the accused's. His home address with his employer, Dundee City Council, was also the accused's.

"On her Facebook page, set up in 2010, she stated she had been married to him since 1990 and her profile picture featured them together."

Grieve, of Finella Terrace, Dundee, pleaded guilty on indictment to a charge under the Tax Credits Act committed between April 6, 2008, and April 6, 2011, at her home address.

Defence solicitor David Sinclair said: "If she receives a custodial sentence she will lose her job. She could pay back the money at £120 a month.

"The benefit to society in general would outweigh a punitive sentence. There would be a cost to the NHS to train someone for her job if she is given custody and the chance of regaining the sums taken would be lost. However, she is ready for what may be visited on her."

Sheriff Tom Hughes jailed Grieve for nine months, saying: "The difficulty that you face is that this was not a one-off incident. It was a course of action over a number of years and a considerable amount of money was involved, over £30,000. Unfortunately custody is inevitable due to the nature of the offence and the values involved."

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