An entrepreneur who denies being reckless about information filed to the Companies Registration Office (CRO) is to face a Circuit Court jury trial following a “reappraisal” of the case by the DPP.
Company director Illann Power, 32, from Co Carlow, was charged in 2022 following an investigation by the Corporate Enforcement Authority (CEA).
He faces three charges of providing false information contrary to Section 876 of the Companies Act 2014, knowingly or recklessly furnishing information to an electronic filing agent from 2014 to 2017.
The prosecution, which started in 2022, is before Dublin District Court, which had accepted jurisdiction to hear the contested case.
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Mr Power had said he wished to clear his good name, and his non-jury District Court hearing was to go ahead on October 29. It had been delayed due to disclosure issues and was listed for mention on Tuesday.
Judge Grainne Malone noted from the State, “a connected matter led to a reappraisal of this matter,” and the DPP issued a new direction for trial on indictment, elevating the trial venue.
That means the case will be dealt with before a judge and jury in the Circuit Court, which has broader sentencing powers.
Mr Power, representing himself, asked for a mistrial, but the judge said the District Court could not and, ultimately, the DPP could give the direction outlined “even in circumstances where it is as late as this”.
She remanded him on bail to appear again in November to be served with the prosecution’s book of evidence and returned for trial.
Power was previously a founder of spirits company Incubrands, which Bacardi later acquired. He later co-created Nohovation, a start-up venture fund and investment firm Illann Power Companies.
Initially, he had been granted bail with strict conditions, including signing on daily at a local Garda station and surrendering his travel documents.
However, those conditions were later relaxed to allow Power to work in America. He was allowed to keep his passport and green card and to move to the US after the court heard he had every intention of returning to Ireland to face the proceedings.
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