Courts / Dublin / Report

Taxi driver jailed for €345k social welfare fraud

Summary

In a case heard by the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, Mohamed Saleh Zayed, a 72‑year‑old taxi driver from Dublin, was sentenced to two and a half years' imprisonment for fraudulently claiming over €345,000 in social welfare payments between March 2003 and November 2015. Zayed pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud and six counts of deception, using a second PPS number to obtain disability, rent and dietary allowance payments for which he was not entitled. He had been working as a taxi driver throughout the period and had no financial need to commit the offences. The judge noted that Zayed had repaid a substantial amount of the money and had an arrangement to reduce the State's loss to €159,118. He was ordered to exhibit good behaviour for 12 months after release and was placed in a low‑security prison at his request. The case was aided by facial‑recognition technology used by Gardaí.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Taxi driver jailed for €345k social welfare fraud. Charges or matters: six counts of fraud and six counts of deception on dates between March 2003 and November 2015. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• March 2003 Hearing Or Sentence
• November 2015 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2022-05-09 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Fraud Stage Sentence

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Read the original CNI report