A 66-year-old Oldbury woman fiddled nearly £12,000 in benefits as she kept her real income from the authorities.
Judge Martin Walsh told pensioner Elsie Sheehy dishonestly taking money out of the benefits system was a serious offence and gave her a 12 week jail term suspended for 18 months.
Sheehy, of Broad Street,,had denied two charges of benefit fraud but she was found guilty after a short trial to hear the evidence.
Patrick Sullivan, prosecuting, said Sheehy claimed benefits without revealing her full income to the authorities.
He told Wolverhampton Crown Court the total overpayment made to Sheehy as a result of her dishonest claims was £11,856.
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