A woman who asked the British government for help claiming she couldn’t leave her house due to severe anxiety was caught.
Catherine Wieland, a 33-year-old British citizen, suffered from such severe anxiety that she couldn’t leave her home. The UK government offered her a pension, which they then withdrew after discovering she was on vacation in Mexico.
According to an official document from the UK Department for Work and Pensions, Wieland had applied for government assistance due to an extreme case of social anxiety.
After reviewing her case, the agency ruled in her favor and provided her with £23,000, equivalent to just over half a million Mexican pesos at the current exchange rate.
The young woman received this financial support for two years, until a series of errors led the British government to discover she had been deceived.
Although Wieland thought she had committed the perfect crime, she left a trail of clues behind her. Bar and pub tabs, 76 appointments at luxury spas, and even a trip to Mexico were all uncovered by authorities.
During her hearing, the woman claimed she was unaware she was not allowed to leave her home, even though the condition she described as social anxiety specifically prohibits leaving the house.
Following her trial, Wieland was sentenced to seven months in prison and ordered to repay all the money the British government gave her during her two years of supposed convalescence.
Source: heraldodemexico
