A magistrate in Wales showed a town's mayor the yellow card this morning (Monday) after he was caught refereeing football matches while claiming state disability benefits.

Keith McNiffe was found to have officiated at 67 games over two seasons while claiming over 9,000 pounds of tax payers money for being too ill to walk.

The 49-year-old was scrounging Incapacity Benefit and Disability Living Allowance. He also stepped down as mayor of Pembroke in west Wales. He admitted two offences of failing to notify the authorities of the change in his condition (He claimed he couldn't walk ten yards when he filled the benefit form).

The court handed him a four-month jail term, suspended for 18 months, ordered him to complete 200 hours' unpaid work and pay 75 pounds in costs.

He will also have to repay the money he claimed illegally.

The chief fraud officer for Wales said after the case that the number of fraud officers in Britain has trebled in the past three years.