A mother of eight who scrounged almost £100,000 in illegal welfare claims has been spared jail after she offered to enrol on a taxpayer funded programme to help her realise her crimes were not "victimless".
Saaba Mahmood, 36, pocketed state benefit handouts on behalf of her aunt and uncle over a five-year period - even though she knew they were living in their native Pakistan.
But when she was caught, Mahmood, of Heald Green near Stockport, Greater Manchester, said she did not realise she was unable to claim on the behalf of relatives who lived abroad.
She also claimed she "lacked skills in understanding how to live in society as a responsible adult" and added that she did not realise her offences were not "victimless crimes".
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