A woman who forced her children to lie to doctors, take medication and even have invasive surgery so she could claim £375,000 in benefits is facing jail.
The shocking case - which appears to resemble Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy - follows a three-year investigation by the Met police after medics raised concerns in May 2013.
A court heard how the 48-year-old woman, who is not being named, took her young son and daughter to various doctors and health professionals insisting they suffered from serious conditions ranging from severe asthma and autism to urology problems and gastric complications.
The 48-year-old forced her young son and daughter to pretend they had serious conditions such as asthma and autism over the course of 10 years, a court heard
The children were fitted with gastronomic tubes they did not need, a court heard
The mum used their fake illnesses to collect Disability Living Allowances for 10 years.
She was found guilty of child cruelty and fraud charges at Croydon Crown Court yesterday, police said.
She will be sentenced on August 15.
The court heard steroid medication was also administered to her son despite the fact that he did not display the signs of 'severe' asthma as the woman insisted, and did not display chronic wheezing and breathlessness she reported to doctors when he was at school.
The woman also encouraged her son to show behaviours which she believed were consistent with autism, and resisted attempts by the child's nursery to toilet train him.
However, despite her description of behaviours he displayed at home, none of the traits were witnessed at school.
As a result of the fabricated illnesses she received £87,424.25 in Disability Living Allowance, between October 2003 and February 2014; and despite living with her partner, who was earning up to £38,000 a year, falsely claimed Income Support benefit.
As a result, the total amount of falsely claimed benefit was £375,198.02.
Detectives attended the home address in May 2013 and arrested the woman and her partner for child cruelty and neglect.
During a search of the property a large amount of unused prescribed medication including asthma drugs, nappies and gastro milk and feeding equipment, with an estimated cost to the NHS of £145,870, was found.
Investigating Officer, Detective Sergeant Stuart Parsons, Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, said: "This truly was a complex investigation, where the evidence we painstaking gathered has resulted in the jury convicting a woman who committed cruelty against her own children for financial gain.
"The investigation was meticulous and detailed, and in order to prove the offences we looked at all aspects of the family, their lifestyle and their financial, medical and education history.
"The level of detail required would not have been possible if it were not for the multi-agency work that took place between the police and other partner agencies such as social services, the local education authority, the Department for Work and Pensions and a number of healthcare providers including local care at home teams.
"One hundred and fourteen witnesses provided evidence for the prosecution, including a number of experts who interpreted complex medical and psychological information for the court to consider.
"It is staggering to think that the mother's willful actions resulted in the children undergoing unnecessary surgical and medical interventions.
"She lied at every opportunity, presenting herself as a lone parent coping with ill and vulnerable children.
"The reality was that she resided with her partner and fabricated her children's conditions for personal financial gain.
"I am pleased she has been convicted today and now faces a considerable term of imprisonment."
The woman was found guilty of:
Four counts of cruelty to a person under 16;
Two counts of obtaining money transfer by deception;
Seven counts of making a false representation;
Two counts if fraud by false representation
Source: Mirror
Source: Mirror
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