Two miles from Grenfell Tower, a lady has appeared in court on charges of falsely requesting assistance for the 2017 fire survivors.
Salma Said, 48, of Kensington is accused of fabricating a series of bogus claims that brought in more than $389,000 by pretending to have lost her house in the tragic fire.
Two other defendants who appeared with her on charges of assisting an offender, Rawda Said, 35, and Makrem Harzi, 38, both from Kensington, are said by the prosecution to have corroborated her account.
Salma Said is also accused of making a dishonest claim through the Right to Buy housing scheme in Barnet in September 2017, three months after the fire which killed 72 people.
She is charged with six counts of fraud by false representation said to have been committed between 2014 and 2018.
The three defendants appeared in Westminster Magistrates’ Court with two others accused of playing parts in the alleged offending.
Nura Abdulkader, 40, from Hackney, is accused lying about living in Grenfell on 14 June 2017 in order to gain ‘housing and financial support’.
William Inglebright, 62, from Hammersmith, is accused of dishonestly claiming to meet the relevant criteria for the Help to Buy scheme in Barnet in May 2017 in order to be granted an equity loan.
All five defendants indicated they would plead not guilty to all offences.
All five were released on bail ahead of a further hearing at Isleworth Crown Court.