A man has been jailed for 12 months after fraudulently claiming nearly £90,000 of benefits.

Dumitru Dolonescu, 33, illegally claimed housing benefit and income support from his home in Harringay Road after he had been deported in 2006 by the UK Border Agency.

He came back to the UK from his native Romania and used an out-of-date certificate from the Home Office.

Following an investigation by officers from Haringey Borough Council and the Department for Work and Pensions it was found Dolonescu had failed to declare his deportation.

He had claimed £56,000 in housing benefits and more than £33,000 in income support between January 2007 and June 2012 before his fraud was discovered.

He was jailed for 12 months for two counts of fraud and was ordered to repay the money.

Cabinet member for finance, councillor Joe Goldberg said: “When struggling families see fraudsters sent to prison like this they rightly want to see action to get the money back.

“It is vital that benefits are there for those who need them and we are determined to stop those who abuse the system.”

He added if the council had reason to believe someone was falsely claiming benefits then it would investigate.