06 March 2024 , 12:28
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A woman has been accused of benefits fraud after she was spotted doing regular mini marathons after claiming she couldn't walk.
Annette Bond spent almost 10 years conning taxpayers out of a massive £67,062.50 despite being able-bodied. On her benefits applications, she claimed her mobility was impaired after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2004.
At Perth Sheriff Court, her mum Elizabeth Bond, 68, told jurors that her daughter regularly exercised as a means of fighting the condition. Video footage played to the court showed Bond clad in high-visibility gear as she raced out for 5k runs through the village of Stanley in Perthshire, where she lived.
Scott Hodge, 54, an investigator for the Department of Work and Pensions, said that it didn't take long for the team to give up their surveillance operation because they'd gathered so much evidence against her so quickly. The court heard they parked outside Bond's home and filmed her three times running the same route during a 10-day period in 2017.
Mr Hodge said: "She is walking briskly and then she turns at the junction and begins to run. That road was taking her away from Stanley and into a wooded area. I have gone ahead of the subject and then captured footage of her running along the road back into Stanley. It would have been hills, ascents and descents, at various different parts of the journey. We used an internet website to ascertain the distance. The estimated distance run was 4,800 metres – just short of three miles."
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At court, the investigator said that on each run, Bond had not required any support from anyone else. She was also not unsteady on her feet and looked in no way impaired. He said the team had been granted a warrant to carry out the surveillance operation between May 30 and August 29, 2017, but brought it to a premature conclusion after less than two weeks.
"It was felt that we would probably just see more of the same over the following days, so the decision was taken to end surveillance," he said. He added that Bond's confident running - often alongside passing cars on main roads around the Perthshire village - was at odds with the claims she had made about her condition.
On her claim form, she stated "I prefer someone with me at all times when I am outdoors because I have poor balance. There is a risk of falling and dizzy spells." Her mother, Elizabeth Bond, 68, told the jury her daughter was diagnosed with MS in 2004, but exercised regularly to fight the condition.
Bond said: "I occasionally saw her when I was on the way to work. She was out running. I was very pleased to see she was fit enough to run. It was most mornings on my way to work. For months. She seemed to walk quite well. She was exercising to try and strengthen her legs. I think she had a running machine in her house. I think it was a cross-trainer she had as well."
The court also heard from a work colleague that Bond had been seen dancing during a Christmas night out. The jury was told that no-one was helping to support her and she was not wearing any leg braces or similar equipment. In an agreed joint minute, the jury was told that Bond had not reported any change in her circumstances to the Department of Work and Pensions between 9 June 2004 and 27 November 2018.
The joint minute also confirmed that jeweller Bond had been running an online Etsy business 'AnnetteGems' between 2013 and 2018. She gave 'no comment' answers during an interview at Perth Job Centre in 2019.
Bond, 49, from Stanley, Perthshire, denies fraudulently obtaining £67,062.50 in benefits from 1 April 2009 until 27 November 2018. She denies failing to tell the DWP about a change in her condition which meant her support needs and physical ability had improved. The claims were for Disability Living Allowance 'enhanced care' and 'enhanced mobility' payments.
The trial, before Sheriff William Wood, continues.