An Italian woman who claimed disability benefits for nearly 40 years has been caught out after police found a video of her bellydancing.

The woman, from Sicily, was receiving more than €800 a month from the state after faking physical and mental disabilities, including a purported “inability to respond to external stimuli”.

She had been receiving the monthly cheques since 1983, police said.

Her success at cheating the system came to an abrupt end when officers found images of her on social media living an apparently happy and healthy life, including enjoying bellydancing lessons.

Police released a photo of her dressed in a salmon pink bellydancing outfit, her arms thrown out energetically as she practiced her moves.

They found photos of her shopping at the supermarket and enjoying trips to the seaside.

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Officers tapped her phone – a common practice in Italy – and intercepted her telling a friend that when she received pills for her alleged condition from a doctor, she would simply throw them away.

Suspicions were aroused when she was visited by a pair of new doctors, who doubted whether she had any physical or mental problems.

“I’m about to lose everything thanks to those two cretins,” she told a friend.

Read more: The Telegraph