Brian Sutcliffe, 74, of Thistlebottom, Charlestown, Hebden Bridge, received almost £150,000 in income support and tax rebates while earning £60,000 a year.
He used the money to fund a lavish lifestyle of foreign travel, continental timeshares and remortgage payments on his home – which he may now lose.
The fraud came to light when investigators discovered Sutcliffe, a company director, held several part-time jobs and had pensions worth £465 a month. A Yorkshire Bank account had mysterious payments amounting to £158,500 made into it while a further £22,000 was invested in Premium Bonds.
Now, the Department for Work and Pensions has vowed to pursue the case to retrieve £1 million under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
The £1 million will include, not only the £150,000 fraudulently claimed, but also any profit made from investing the illegally received cash.
It means just two months after being jailed for three years for false accounting, making a false statement and keeping a wrongful credit Sutcliffe faces losing everything.
The fraud began in 1995 when Sutcliffe was freed from prison for theft and possessing illegal tobacco.
He continued to claim benefits his wife received while he was inside and then added to the income by also claiming in his own name.
He also received mortgage interest payment help despite the property being remortgaged in 1991 to buy N and R Demolitions.
Over 10 years he falsely claimed £145,599.77 – about £17,000 a year.
Similar charges against wife Judith were dropped because she suffered a brain haemorrhage in March 1995 and allowed her husband to take over the family finances.
A confiscation hearing at Bradford Crown Court was adjourned to August 12. Martin Robertshaw, for Sutcliffe, said the claim would be contested.