Benefits fraud couple who splashed £720k of taxpayer's money on luxury lifestyle after 'commercial scale' scam are jailed for four years after being caught trying to flee at the Channel Tunnel
A shameless couple stole £720k from the UK taxpayer and used it to fund their lavish lifestyle - splashing out on designer clothing, a spa day and a Rolex.
Wiktoria Packowska and her partner Wojciech Kowalski, both 28, created false bank accounts, identity documents and utility bills to make more than 80 false benefits claims across three years, a court heard.
But the couple's scheme began to unravel in 2020 when they were stopped by police as they tried to leave the country through the English Channel - with more than £60,000 in cash hidden in their clothing.
On Monday, June 24, the deceitful pair were jailed for four years.
Recorder Daniel Stevenson issued a stark reminder to the couple - that 'every person in this country who works hard and pays their taxes' was a victim of their crimes.
Wiktoria Packowska (pictured) and her partner stole more than £720,000 from British taxpayers
Along with his girlfriend, Wojciech Kowalski (pictured) created false bank accounts, identity documents and utility bills to make more than 80 false benefits claims across three years
Canterbury Crown Court heard Polish nationals Packowska and Kowalski first came to the attention of authorities in June 2020 when they were stopped trying to leave the UK via the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone, on the Kent coast.
Prosecutors said that after the couple claimed they were only taking £1,000 each to mainland Europe, Border Force officers found around £62,000 in cash on them - £50,000 of which was stuffed down Packowska's leggings, and £12,000 in her handbag.
Upon searching the couple's homes in East London - once at the time of their initial arrest and a second time 14 months later - police discovered a 'treasure trove of tools' demonstrating the true extent of their criminality.
The tools included fake Polish identity cards, numerous mobile phones, sandwich bags filled with SIM cards, multiple bank cards, benefit claim documents, utility bills, passports and birth certificates.
The court heard notebooks with handwritten details of hundreds of names, addresses, dates of birth, bank account and national insurance numbers and answers to security questions.
Landlord details were also found.
Further evidence of the scams was uncovered on Kowalski's phone in the form of images of passports, cash, and false tenancy agreements, as well as screenshots of internet banking details.
However, the fraudster couple were undeterred by the police and continued their roles as 'day-to-day managers' of the fraud until they were arrested again in August 2021.
Packowska was bold enough to strap an expensive Rolex, with a value of around £12,500, to her wrist during her second arrest.
But during the sentencing hearing for what was described as a 'commercial scale' benefit fraud, Packowska was heard whimpering as she and her partner were led from the dock to begin their jail terms.
Both Packowska and Kowalski admitted two offences of conspiracy to commit fraud by making false claims for Universal Credit and housing benefits between May 2019 and August 2021.
Police searched their East London homes twice and found credit cards used by Packowska and Kowalski
Police discovered a 'treasure trove of tools' including sandwich bags filled with SIM cards
They also pleaded guilty to two offences of possessing articles for use in fraud.
These documents, containing the personal details of third parties for use in fraudulent Universal Credit claims, were found at addresses in Ilford and Romford in East London.
The couple also admitted to possessing criminal property in relation to the £62,290 cash found on them at the Channel Tunnel.
Packowska and Kowalski claimed they had acted under pressure and coercion from others involved in the scam and asserted that their financial benefit was ultimately limited.
The claims were rejected by the court.
Recorder Stevenson told the couple that though the total loss to the public purse was only £723,232, the figure could have been 'far greater' had their illicit enterprise not been foiled.
Jailing them both for four years, he said: 'Your activity only ceased because it was discovered.
'The fact that it continued in the same way following your first arrest shows that you had no intention of stopping your illegal conduct.
'The principal victim of your fraud is the Treasury. That means that every person in this country who works hard and pays their taxes to support the welfare state is a victim.
'Most right-thinking people in this country believe that we should have a system whereby those persons who are unable to work, either through disability or lack of opportunity, or who need financial support with child or housing costs, can receive financial assistance from the state.
'You both abused that support system by setting up multiple false claims to make money. This was benefit fraud on a commercial scale.'
Recorder Stevenson added that although they had not received all the proceeds of the 'sophisticated and organised' fraud, they had benefited financially to the tune of 'tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands'.
'The money you received and expected to receive is a reflection of the importance of your managerial role within it,' he continued.
'The fact that, without very much consideration, you felt able to purchase luxury goods including a £12,500 Rolex watch shows that, for you, this was an enterprise which made you significant sums of money.'
Confiscation proceedings for the couple will take place at a later hearing.
Polish nationals Packowska and Kowalski were stopped trying to leave the UK via the Channel Tunnel (pictured) at Folkestone, on the Kent coast
Packowska and Kowalski were both jailed for four years at Canterbury Crown Court (pictured)
Detective Constable Stuart Tracey, of Kent Police, said: 'Wojciech Kowalski and Wiktoria Packowska abused the benefits system and cheated their way towards vast sums of money intended for people who needed it more than they did.
'They created multiple false identities to commit their crimes and even lied about where they lived when they were first arrested at the Channel Tunnel.
'However, they could not escape the truth for long and are both now behind bars as a result.'
