A benefit cheat who fraudulently claimed £23,000 in handouts by lying to Jobcentre bosses that she was a single parent dodged a jail term.
Alison Dempsey claimed partner Daniel McGouldrick had moved out of their home and that she was raising her son alone.
She kept up the fraud for more than two-and-a-half years raking in £14,000 in Tax Credits, £4,500 in housing and income tax benefits and £4,500 in income support.
However, a sheriff declined to send Dempsey to prison, because the law relating to the bulk of the money she fraudulently claimed meant a maximum jail term of six months for that offence.
Sheriff George Way told Dempsey: “Given the discounts required, early release and that you’d almost certainly be released early on home detention curfew it seems to me that custody would be the lesser punishment.”
He said it was likely Dempsey would spend just a matter of weeks behind bars if he jailed her.
Depute fiscal Vicki Bell told the Court that Dempsey has no previous convictions.
Dempsey, 29, of Dundee, pleaded guilty to one charge under the Tax Credits Act and two under the Social Security Administration Act.
Andy Lyall, defending, said: “These sums have been repaid in full.”
Sheriff George Way imposed a community payback order with 210 hours unpaid work and 18 months supervision.
He also placed Demspey on an electronic tag restricting her to her home address from 7pm to 7am for four months.