BATHURST radio personality Janeen Hosemans has been ordered to work 150 hours unpaid for the community as an alternative to a nine-month gaol sentence following her conviction for social security fraud.

Hosemans, of Piper Street, Bathurst, was last month found guilty following a two-day hearing of receiving a financial advantage from a Commonwealth entity between January and December 2006. She returned to Bathurst Local Court yesterday to be sentenced by magistrate Thomas Hodgson, who remarked on “a sad matter before the court because of difficulties [Hosemans] experienced in her personal life”.

Mr Hodgson said Hosemans had “buried her head in the sand” when Centrelink questioned her about over payments of a single parenting allowance amounting to about $6000.

He acknowledged Hosemans was “a person of high profile involved in numerous community works”.

However, the magistrate told Hosemans that social security fraud was often committed by persons of prior good character.

“Superior courts say persons committing social security fraud should be imprisoned because it’s so prevailing and difficult to detect,” he said.

Mr Hodgson recorded a conviction and imposed a sentence of nine months’ gaol to be served by way of a community service order of 150 hours.

Hosemans is to report to Probation and Parole Services within seven days and has been ordered to pay $5771.27 compensation to the Commonwealth Service Delivery Agency.

Hosemans’ solicitor Greg Wilkinson tendered testimonials which Mr Hodgson read, saying “she comes very highly recommended”.

Mr Wilkinson told the court Hosemans that “respected the decision of the court” that found her guilty of the charge on July 7. He said material in documents before the court explained that Hosemans had been overpaid without realising it.

Mr Wilkinson went so far as to say that Hosemans did not know but normally she was a person who would have realised. They were not normal circumstances and had she realised she would have done something about it, he said.

According to Mr Wilkinson, Hosemans had already started paying off her debt to Centrelink. The amount she owed was only about $3000.

Mr Wilkinson asked Mr Hodgson not to record a conviction but police prosecutor Sergeant Brett Donaghy, who represented the Commonwealth Director of Prosecutions, said the DPP would object to Hosemans being given a Section 10 first offender’s bond.

After the sentence was handed down Mr Wilkinson said it was likely Hosemans would appeal over the severity of the sentence in the Bathurst District Court.