Moment benefits cheat who said he couldn't walk 20 metres is caught riding a motorbike and smoking cigarette - as he avoids prison for £9,000 fraud

By OLIVIA CHRISTIE, NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:24, 3 July 2026 | Updated: 16:29, 3 July 2026 This is the moment a benefits cheat who said he could not walk more than 20 metres was caught riding a motorbike and smoking a cigarette.  Tony Rose, 32, fraudulently claimed almost £9,000 in personal independence payments, or PIP, after saying he needed help washing, cleaning, cooking, and dressing. He was spared jail at Bromley Magistrates' Court yesterday - despite magistrate Patrick Mellody saying he had 'ripped off the benefits system'. The court heard Rose had suffered from a genuine spinal condition since he was seven years old, leading to three major surgeries that left him bed bound at various times. He started to claim PIP in November 2017 for his spinal conditions and mental health, claiming he needed to use a wheelchair for mobility. But in 2022, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) received an anonymous tip-off alleging doubtful disability and undeclared cash-in-hand employment. Rose was secretly surveilled between January and March 2023, where he was seen leaving his home in south east London in the early hours without a walking aid and going to a waste disposal plant, where he was seen wearing a high-visibility vest. This is the moment benefits cheat Tony Rose who said he could not walk more than 20 metres was caught riding a motorbike and smoking a cigarette Rose started to claim PIP in November 2017 for his spinal conditions and mental health, claiming he needed to use a wheelchair for mobility Rose was spared jail at Bromley Magistrates' Court yesterday - despite magistrate Patrick Mellody saying he had 'ripped off the benefits system' He was also seen on various occasions removing a cover from a motorbike, walking the bike from his property, and riding it away unaided. Prosecutor Dami Oyedepo said: 'If his claims were true at the beginning, the surveillance showed that this was no longer the case.' The Department for Work and Pensions said he had been overpaid in benefits by more than £8,800 over ten months. Rose made no admission when interviewed under caution, but pleaded guilty to failing to notify a change in circumstances that would affect his entitlement in May this year. Mitigating, Aderinsayo Adeyumi said his client initially claimed PIP legitimately but failed to inform the Department for Work and Pensions when his condition improved.  He added that Rose's health condition puts him at risk of being paralysed in the future. Mr Adeyumi said: 'His understanding was that he was signed on for ten years and there was no review during that time.' Rose was judged as not eligible for unpaid work, but was ordered to repay £1,000. Magistrate Patrick Mellody said: 'We've reluctantly dropped the compensation down by £7,500 as you have no money with which to pay it back.' Rose will receive a Loss of Benefit Penalty for a minimum of 13 weeks if he is eligible for benefits in the future. The DWP says it will look to recover fraudulently obtained benefits via the Proceeds of Crime Act and other debt recovery measures, where appropriate. Minister for Transformation Andrew Western said: 'The message is clear - don't think you can steal from hard-working taxpayers. 'Whatever your reasons for committing benefit fraud, know that our investigators are wise to every trick in the book and you cannot race off with money that shouldn't be yours. 'And if you know somebody is fleecing the system, report it.' No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.