A MUSIC teacher who lived in a €3,000 a month Dublin penthouse apartment with a private pool claimed a staggering €175,000 in social welfare payments, a court has heard.
Daniel Daudet, 40, from Spencer Dock, Dublin, used a false identity to claim the benefits between 2002 and 2015, according to the Irish Independent.
At his sentencing hearing on Wednesday, Judge Melanie Greally said she needed time to consider the submissions before sentencing Daudet on January 29.
The court heard how Daudet used an altered French national identity card to obtained a PPS number under the name Alexander Daude in 2002.
He used it to claim Jobseeker's Allowance, Rent Allowance, Back to Education Allowance and Supplementary Welfare benefit.
He completed a degree in music on a Back to Education scheme and went on to become a music teacher.
Daudet also obtained a second PPS number using his own name.
Private pool
The court heard he simultaneously earned a salary as a music teacher under his own identity while claiming benefits using the fraudulent identity.
Daudet was able to continue receiving Rent Allowance under the false identity after he kept a postbox key for an address at Percy Place, Dublin 4.
Meanwhile he lived at a penthouse apartment with a private pool, costing €3,000 a month.
Daudet’s deception was exposed when social welfare officers investigated Alexander Daude.
They could find no trace of Daude but discovered a LinkedIn profile for Daniel Daudet, whose picture, date of birth and profession matched their own records for Daude.
A search of Daudet’s home found photocopies showing the alteration of an ID card from Daniel Daudet to Alexander Daude.
At a trial last year, Daudet pleaded not guilty to all 783 charges of social welfare fraud, but was found guilty on 720 counts.
He has been in custody since then.
Daudet has been paying off the debt at €100 a week since 2016 and owes €167,800.
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