A 60-year-old Cheltenham man who admitted obtaining State benefits he was not entitled to is 'up to his eyeballs in debt,' a court has heard.

In February this year, Ahmet Gerikan, who lives at the former Turkish restaurant Angora, in Albion Street, Cheltenham, was sentenced to a 12-month conditional discharge.

Gerikan admitted receiving £8,945.29 in employment support allowance and job seekers allowance to which he was not entitled between January 30 2014 and September 8, 2015.

He was originally charged with fraud, but the prosecution accepted he had not acted dishonestly when he failed to notify the Department of Work and Pensions of a change in his circumstances that affected his entitlement to benefits in that 18-month period.

However, Gerikan was back before Gloucester Crown Court this week for a Proceeds of Crime Act hearing to determine what assets could be seized from him.

Joe Maloney, Gerikan's defence lawyer, said it was a situation he was 'gradually trying to unravel'.

He showed Judge Ian Lawrie QC a plastic bag which he said was Gerikan's 'filing cabinet.

"Without a shadow of doubt," Mr Maloney said, "he is up to his eyeballs in debt."

The lawyer said: "His debts probably amount to £150,000 at a conservative estimate."

Mr Maloney said he had visited Gerikan at his address in Cheltenham and described it as a 'deathtrap'.

The lawyer showed the judge photographs of the property, which he said highlighted the state of dilapidation.

"Those planks to the door, they are over a chasm," Mr Maloney said. "The front door is a death trap.

"He is living upstairs in a very unsafe house.

"I am amazed it has not been closed down by the relevant authorities," he told the judge. "That building should be knocked down and started from scratch.

"He should not be living in this building."

Mr Maloney said Gerikan had no previous convictions and a 'chequered past' in terms of his health.

He said he would file a statement in relation to Gerikan's financial position by mid-November.

The judge fixed a further hearing for January 16 next year.