A housing fraudster, who fled the country with a warrant for his arrest outstanding, has been brought to justice by Harrow Council. Ahmad Al-Masri, who absconded after failing to turn up for a court appearance, had a bumpy landing when returning through Heathrow in June. Far from finding the heat had died down, Al-Masri was immediately detained by UK border officials and held on remand.
At Hendon Magistrates Court last month Al-Masri, 34, finally owned up to his crime. He was ordered to repay all £2,000 he’d duped from Harrow Council’s Help2Let scheme, and was given a nine month suspended sentence and 200 hours of unpaid work.
Cllr Glen Hearnden, who has Cabinet responsibility for Housing, said: “This criminal narrowly avoided having his housing need met by Her Majesty. I’m delighted we’re getting our money back – but the real victim here is his unsuspecting tenant, who thought she’d found a place to call home.”
Al-Masri’s inept criminal caper started in 2015, when he first claimed to be the landlord of rental accommodation in Wembley. Far from being a property magnate though, Al-Masri was himself a tenant at the address and claiming housing benefit from Brent Council.
That didn’t stop him advertising the flat in the Preston Road area for let on the website Gumtree. A woman registered as homeless with Harrow Council became Al-Masri’s unsuspecting victim when she responded to his ad. She was looking for a fresh start using Harrow Council’s Help2Let scheme. It gives homeless people a leg-up, by providing them with the money for a deposit and first month’s rent – getting people into private rented accommodation, and off the council’s waiting lists.
Harrow Council’s fraud team quickly rumbled Al-Masri’s flimsy subterfuge. He was evicted by the property’s real landlord and ordered by the council to pay back the money in full. When he failed to do so, he was summoned to appear in court. When he failed to appear, a warrant for his arrest was issued.
If you suspect fraud involving council money, you can report it online at harrow.gov.uk/fraud, by emailing [email protected] or by calling 020 8424 1834 (24 hour answer machine).
