A GALASHIELS woman is to stand trial on fraud charges involving more than £25,000.
Forty-year-old Mhairi Dobson, of Broom Drive, is alleged to have received £20,985.30 in housing benefit and £3,065.41 in council tax benefit to which she was not entitled. She is also charged with obtaining £2,460.45 in income support from the Department of Work and Pensions, but not notifying it that her circumstances had changed in that she was married and living with her husband.
The alleged offences date back to November 2010.
Dobson pleaded not guilty to the charges and a trial was fixed for August 20, with an intermediate hearing on July 22.
£300 fine for bully
A TEXTILE firm worker who kicked his partner on the leg during a heated argument was fined £300.
Craig McGarry, 25, appeared from custody and pleaded guilty to the offence which happened at a house in March Street, Peebles, on Sunday evening.
The court was told that his partner felt he was controlling her and he responded angrily when she didn’t answer his calls and text messages while out walking with friends during Sunday.
When she returned to the house the pair had an argument and McGarry assaulted her, causing bruising to her knee.
Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said the victim declined medical attention.
Defending, Robert More said his client accepted the relationship was now over and was ashamed at what he had done.
Sheriff Kevin Drummond described the offence as “simply bullying”.
Offender admonished
A SELKIRK woman who received £2,206 in benefits to which she was not entitled by failing to declare she was working in a call centre has been admonished.
The court was told that that Fiona Oliver, 43, of Roberts Avenue, was repaying the sum to the Department of Work and Pensions.
The offence happened between October 2010 and June 2011.
Trio face assault trial
THREE men have been accused of assaulting a man in the Wilderhaugh area of Galashiels.
Thomas Fleming, 29, and 22-year-old Steven Fleming, both of Tweedholm Avenue East, Walkerburn, and Arran Brunton, of St Ronan’s Road, Innerleithen, pleaded not guilty to punching and kicking the man on the body to his injury on April 7.
A trial was fixed for August 20, with an intermediate hearing on July 22.
Teenager’s not guilty pleas
A SELKIRK teenager has denied assaulting a male and a female in the town.
Jordan Lunt, 18, of Sentryknowe, pleaded not guilty to assaulting a man at Angus O’Malley’s public house and The Valley on March 9 by repeatedly punching, kicking and stamping on his head and body to his injury. He has lodged a special defence of self-defence to that charge.
Lunt also denies assaulting a woman at The Valley on the same day. A trial was fixed for June 4.
Mum and daughter row
A WOMAN who stabbed herself after a vodka-drinking session when she found out her partner had a previous relationship with her daughter was fined £135.
Iwona Tomaszkiewicz, 53, snapped during the row with her daughter when they talked about her partner’s status as a registered sex offender.
The daughter’s two children were also in the one-bedroom flat in Gala Park Court, Galashiels, as the argument flared on a Saturday evening in March with the affair coming to light.
The accused admitted behaving in a threatening and abusive manner, shouting and swearing, brandishing a knife, striking a television with the weapon and stabbing herself in the stomach.
Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said Tomaszkiewicz’s daughter had come to Galashiels to stay for the weekend with her children and the plan was to stay over, with all three adults drinking vodka in the living room.
She explained the situation deteriorated when the two women started taking about the man’s status as a registered sex offender.
Sheriff Kevin Drummond took into account she was a first offender and planned to return to Poland.
Woman must repay £9,237
A GALASHIELS woman who obtained more than £9,000 in benefits she was not entitled to over a three-year period has been ordered to repay the money.
Karen Hendrie had denied receiving £25,703.65 in severe disablement allowance while failing to mention to Job Centre Plus officials that she was working in the Bon Marche retail clothing store in Channel Street, Galashiels.
But the 49-year-old, of Forest Gardens, pleaded guilty to obtaining the reduced sum of £9,237 in benefits to which she was not entitled to.
Sheriff Kevin Drummond deferred sentence until September 23 to allow Hendrie to repay the outstanding sum.