'Justice has been done': singer P J Proby cleared of £47,000 benefits fraud

PJ Proby, the veteran pop singer (PA)

PJ Proby, the veteran pop singer, has been cleared of benefit fraud after the prosecution dropped its case following the discovery of new evidence. Proby, 73, was acquitted on all nine counts after being accused of cheating the benefits system out of more than £47,000 by claiming he had just £5 in the bank.

The singer-songwriter, who was born in the US, smiled in the dock at Worcester Crown Court as he was found not guilty on the directions of Judge John Cavell nine days into a three-week trial. Prosecutors said they had found documents relating to the case in an office in Doncaster.

"Justice has finally been done," said Mr Proby, from Twyford. "I was not dishonest when I claimed benefits, which I needed in order to live. I only performed to give pleasure and not to make money."