Council worker stole almost £500k in fake housing benefit claims which she ‘blew’ on online slots

Benefits fraudster spared jail after receiving £490,000 to fuel gambling habit

A council worker in charge of housing benefit payments has been spared jail after scamming her employer out of almost £500,000.Joella Preston, who worked for Dartford and Sevenoaks councils in Kent, fraudulently obtained £493,487 over the course of nine years by setting up false claims for people she knew.A court heard how she had used the stolen funds on online slot machines, driven by a gambling addiction. Preston's fraudulent behaviour unrave…

Council worker stole almost £500k in fake housing benefit claims which she ‘blew’ on online slots

A gambling-addict who swindled her local authority employers out of huge sums of cash while in charge of housing benefit payments has avoided jail.