POLICE investigating an alleged fraudulent insurance claim for burglary found more than £22,000 in cash when they searched a couple's house.

But Sharon and John Thorne were claiming income support, a court was told.

The pair called police claiming their home had been broken into and property, worth several thousand pounds, taken while they were on a trip to London.

But when police went to their home, they found many items identical to the ones they told the insurance company had been stolen.

Sharon Thorne, aged 34, and her husband, John, aged 39, of Rutland Street, Leigh, appeared at Bolton Crown Court yesterday.

The couple denied attempting to obtain money by deception and Mrs Thorne denied false accounting in respect of an income support application. The couple claimed a large amount of property had been taken during the burglary, including a quad bike, a 40 inch television, a computer, a stereo system and a printer.

When police searched her mother's home, they discovered a quad bike in the garage and a 40 inch television, computer parts and a stereo identical to the goods they said were stolen.

In police statements read to the court, both said the other had bought replacements for some of the items stolen and that the quad bike found at her mother's address was a second one they owned.

She said the cash found at the home came from the sale of property used in their former tarmac business, the sale of a horse-box and horses, a gift of £5,000 and the sale of a jet ski.

Proceeding