A BENEFIT cheat who failed to tell the authorities that her husband was in work has been ordered to wear an electronic tag.

At Bolton Magistrates’ Court Sara Hamilton, aged 28, of Gray Street North, Bolton, pleaded guilty to making a false statement to obtain employment and support allowance and failing to notify a change of circumstances affecting entitlement to the allowance and housing benefit.

Magistrates heard how Hamilton had been overpaid by £13,341.26 but is now paying the money back.

Rahil Khan, defending, said that Hamilton and her husband, Reece, married in 2012. He had qualified as a lorry driver in the Army and, after leaving the armed services in 2011, had a succession of short term jobs.

But Mr Khan added that they had only been agency positions or zero hours contracts and Mrs Hamilton, who has a number of health problems which means she is unfit to work, did not realisie she had to declare her husband’s earnings.

Magistrates sentenced her to an electronically monitored 7pm to 7am curfew for 10 weeks and she must pay £170 in costs and charges.