Bulgarian fraud gang convicted after stealing £54m in biggest-ever benefits scam

The five set up ‘benefits factories’ and stole £54m over five years by filing around 6,000 false claims

A Bulgarian gang stole £54m of taxpayers’ money over five years by filing thousands of false claims in the largest benefits scam seen in England and Wales.

Galina Nikolova, 38, Stoyan Stoyanov, 27, Tsvetka Todorova, 52, Gyunesh Ali, 33, and Patritsia Paneva, 26, used the benefits system like a “cash machine” to fund their lavish lifestyles.

Footage taken from inside a flat shows one of the fraudsters showering the floor with dozens of £20 notes – money used to buy designer clothes, holidays, designer watches and even a high-end Audi sports car.

Up to £750,000 in bank notes was found stuffed in suitcases at one of their homes alongside forged and false documents.

They made around 6,000 false benefits claims using forged GP letters and fake payslips between 2016 and 2021 through three “benefits factories”, which claimed to assist people with obtaining a national insurance number and benefits to which they are entitled.

However, it was found that after applicants made their claims for benefits through these three sources, they left them in the hands of the organised crime group.

Guilty: (clockwise from top left) Stoyan Stoyanov, 27, Galina Nikolova, 38, Patritsia Paneva, 26, Tsvetka Todorova, 52, and Gyunesh Ali, 33 (Crown Prosecution Service)

The court heard how the money gained from these fraudulent claims was then laundered. It was moved between several accounts through numerous transfers and withdrawn in cash until the criminals could use it legitimately.

Specialist CPS prosecutor Ben Reid said: “This case is the largest benefit fraud prosecution ever brought to the courts in England and Wales.

“For a number of years, these defendants conspired to commit industrial-scale fraud against the universal credit system, costing the taxpayer more than £50m.

Wads of cash were found at addresses of the criminals (Crown Prosecution Service)

“This was a sustained attack on a system that is supposed to protect the most vulnerable in our society. But instead, this gang used it as a cash machine to fund their lavish lifestyles.”

All five have pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering-related offences and will be sentenced at Wood Green Crown Court on 28 May.

Mel Stride, secretary of state for the Department for Work and Pensions, said: “I am immensely proud of DWP investigators’ work, in collaboration with the Crown Prosecution Service, to take down this organised crime group.

“Today’s convictions underline our commitment to protecting taxpayers’ money and it is only right and fair that we bring to justice those stealing from the public purse.

“My message is simple – if you are committing benefit fraud, you are cheating the taxpayer, and we will catch you.”