SIXTY bogus benefit claimants were caught by council staff in 2011/12, Oxford City Council has revealed.

They were successfully prosecuted, cautioned or given penalties for fraud worth £212,921, the council said.

And a council report said it found £90,388 in fraud for benefits not administered by the authority, such as work-related payments.

Also, five properties were repossessed, including two where the tenant was absent but claiming housing and council tax benefit.

The report by the council’s investigation team said it had been a “challenging year” because of heavy case loads.

The report said the number of completed investigations per 1,000 was 90 compared to a Government target of 58.

But the number of penalties per 1,000 was 4.73 compared to a target of 5.2 because of “the high case load”.