A SCHEMING pub landlady who together with her husband fraudulently claimed almost £48,000 worth of benefits has been jailed for three years.

Elizabeth Jayne Lewis, 57, former landlady of the Royal Oak in Bere Regis, was labelled as "the prime mover" behind the offences by Judge Roger Jarvis.

Husband Leonard Lewis was unable to attend Bournemouth Crown Court after being admitted to hospital with a suspected heart attack. His sentencing was postponed until November 29.

At a hearing at Bournemouth Crown Court on October 12 the couple had applied to change their guilty pleas.

But their application failed and they were ordered by Judge Jarvis to pay back more than £7,300.

Judge Jarvis issued a warrant for Elizabeth Lewis' arrest the same day after she failed to attend court, citing ill health.

The couple also hit the headlines in August last year when they announced plans for strippers and erotic dancers at the Royal Oak.

The couple were finally evicted from their pub on Thursday by bailiffs and police officers.

Elizabeth Lewis was later involved in a scuffle with police later the same day when they turned up to arrest her at a friend's house at Ringwood, the court heard.

The court was told that the couple claimed income support but failed to declare they had money in bank and building society accounts, owned a car hire company and had received £7,000 in compensation from Hampshire Police Constabulary.

They did not declare that they had bought a £39,950 flat in Wimborne Road, Bournemouth and received money by renting the property out.

The couple jointly admitted 11 counts of claiming income support by deception between June 24, 1998 and December 10, 2001.

The mother-of-four also pleaded guilty to dishonestly obtaining £31,579 in housing benefit from East Dorset District Council between July 28, 1996 and December 19, 2001.

Leonard Lewis alone admitted three charges of obtaining £14,379 from Compass Insurance by deception.

He received three sickness insurance payments between July 23, 1995 and August 4, 1999 after claiming illness had prevented him from working as a bookkeeper surveyor.

At the time Leonard Lewis was registered as unemployed and claiming income support and had never worked as a bookkeeper surveyor.

Elizabeth Lewis has a previous conviction for obtaining property by deception, the court was told.