A man took money for his son’s care to fund his own personal lifestyle.

Bruno Tshipamba, 46, of Addison Crescent, Old Trafford, was convicted on January 22 at Minshull Street Crown Court of dishonestly obtaining £21,881 from Trafford Council over four years.

Mr Tshipamba was responsible for managing the funds sent to him by Trafford Council to pay for his son's care.

But the father used that position to transfer cash into his partner's bank account for their personal use.

The council ended up overpaying Mr Tshipamba for his son's care between January 2014 and June 2018 as a result.

Mr Tshipamba is also one of five trustees of the Manchester's Lingala Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, which is registered as a charity.

After pleading guilty at an earlier hearing, he appeared in court again and was given a nine-month custodial sentence, suspended for 12 months for the dishonestly obtaining more than £21,000.

He has also been ordered to undertake a 10 day rehabilitation activity requirement.

The council is recovering all of the money it overpaid to Mr Tshipamba as a result of this offence.

Council officers found out about the overpayments through carrying out an audit of the amounts it was paying to Mr Tshipamba.

That audit flagged some discrepancies and showed significant funds were routinely being transferred away from the account set up to receive council payment for his son's care.

Mr Tshipamba was unable to account for these discrepancies or transfers.

When interviewed, he admitted that there had been mistakes made with managing the account, which he no longer has access to.

On sentencing him, Judge Potter at Minshull Street Crown Court described Mr Tshipamba’s actions as being "thoroughly dishonest."

A spokesperson for Trafford Council said: “Mr Tshipamba should be thoroughly ashamed of his actions. The money he fraudulently claimed from the council could have gone on funding children with their support needs.

“This case should act as a warning to others that we will vigorously pursue any fraudsters through the courts. We will recover money to invest in our residents and they will end up with a criminal record.”

If you suspect anyone of fraud being committed against the authority, you can contact Trafford Council on 0161 912 1026 or 0161 912 1839.

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