By Ellie Gosley

Copyright walesonline

Four people have been caught using the blue badges of people who have died in a crackdown on abuse of the scheme by a Welsh council. Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s enforcement officers noticed the four individuals displaying the blue badge on the dashboard but upon closer inspection, realised that something was wrong. They soon discovered it was not possible for the owner of the badge to be parked in the space or accompanying the driver because they were actually dead. Each of the offenders were interviewed under caution by officers from the council’s corporate fraud team and admitted the offences. The four offenders were successfully then prosecuted and taken to court. Gareth Farr, Kim Mullen, Ivor Bowler and Ruth Catlow all appeared at Merthyr Magistrates Cour t on July 7 and pleaded guilty to having possession, an article (i.e. the blue badge) for the use of or in connection with a fraud, contrary to Section 6 of the Fraud Act 2006. Bowler, 58, of Rhydyfelin, was caught using the blue badge illegally on two separate occasions and was fined £200 and made to pay £283 in costs and a victim surcharge, totalling £483. Catlow, 61, of Aberdare , was fined £166 and made to pay £269 in costs and a victim surcharge, totalling £435. Farr, 73, of Church Village, was fined £80 and made to pay £235 in costs and a victim surcharge, totalling £315. Mullen, 67, of Mountain Ash, was fined £80 and made to pay £235 in costs and a victim surcharge, totalling £315. Two of the individuals were caught illegally using the badges in the council-owned Gas Road car park in Pontypridd . A vehicle displaying a valid Blue Badge can park free of charge in RC T council car parks, if parked in a designated disabled bays. The council is using the prosecutions as a warning to others who abuse the disabled badge scheme. Get the latest Ponty news first by signing up to our newsletter here Earlier this year, the council prosecuted Laura Morris after she was caught using her dead grandfather’s blue badge. Blue badge misuse is a criminal offence and can result in a fine of up to £1,000 and a criminal record. A Penalty Charge Notice of up to £70 will normally be issued to anyone misusing a disabled parking bay. Councillor Christina Leyshon, RCT council cabinet member said: “People rely on their blue badges and the scheme is designed to help people with mobility challenges access local amenities, so that they can park near workplaces, supermarkets, and health facilities. Illegal and misuse of the scheme denies a space to someone who genuinely needs it. “It is particularly concerning that all of these convictions involved the display of a badge that belonged to a deceased person. “It is not acceptable to misuse this service, and the recent enforcement operation shows that this council is taking action to stop this abuse. “This won’t be tolerated in in RCT and our dedicated team will continue to regularly patrol areas within the county borough and individuals found to abuse this support scheme will be prosecuted.”