Sarah Yarwood, 39, has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison after defrauding the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) of £70,000 by falsely claiming she was terminally ill with cancer. She deceived the authorities by presenting fake hospital letters and medical records, asserting she had just six months to live.
During police questioning, Yarwood maintained she was “riddled” with cancer and also claimed to suffer from multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, and Lewy body dementia. Her fabricated medical conditions were key to securing Personal Independence Payments (PIP) amounting to £27,998, alongside £42,157 in Universal Credit (UC) benefits.
Judge Michael Maher condemned her conduct as a “sustained” and “relentless” fraud, highlighting the elaborate layers of deceit woven into her claims. He remarked on the “grotesque lies” and “bogus medical letters” used to exploit the benefits system. The judge criticized the failure to rigorously scrutinize her claims, attributing it in part to misplaced human sympathy.
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Describing Yarwood as a “thoroughly unscrupulous individual,” Judge Maher noted her audacity and the emotional manipulation involved in prolonging the fraud. Despite repaying only £1,196 of the money obtained, Yarwood remains £30,000 in debt.
Defending counsel Niamh Ingham acknowledged Yarwood’s remorse but explained that she cited her health as the motivating factor behind her fraudulent actions.