AIB not liable for ex official’s alleged defrauding of publican, judge rules

A judge has ruled AIB and others are not liable for losses suffered by a publican after she was allegedly defrauded by a former AIB investment manager.

Ann Condon (53), Bridgemount, Carrigaline, Co Cork, claimed former Mallow AIB official Kieran Ashcroft stole from her and defrauded her of her investment in the Anchor Bar, George’s Quay, Cork.

Mr Ashcroft, from Courtmacsharry, disappeared shortly after he was arrested in February 2004 as part of a Garda investigation into the alleged fraud.

The DPP directed he be charged with theft and fraud but this never occurred because he could not be found despite Interpol and Europol having been notified of his disappearance.

Ms Condon claimed she was one of a large number of victims of a €1.25 million fraud perpetrated on AIB customers by Mr Ashcroft who was dismissed from his job in 2002.

She sued AIB and Mr Ashcroft as well as Bank of Ireland and its Mallow branch manager, Michael Carroll, whom she claimed had introduced and recommended Mr Ashcroft to her.

Her claim included negligence and negligent misstatement as well as direct, or alternatively vicarious liability, by AIB for the actions of Ashcroft.

Mr Carroll and the banks denied the claims. Mr Ashcroft was not represented.

The court only dealt with the issue as to who was liable for Ms Condon’s alleged losses and fraud.

Ms Justice Ní­ Raifeartaigh said the court was not entitled to start from a presumption of fraud by Mr Ashcroft and Ms Condon's case must be established on the balance of probabilities.

Far from ideal

The 15-18 year gap between the hearing of this case more and the events it was concerned with was far from ideal given the effect of time upon memories, she said.

Mr Carroll, of Bank of Ireland, although he had introduced Ms Condon to Mr Ashcroft, had testified he had not vouched for Mr Ashcroft’s character and never suggested they go into partnership over the pub, she said.

The judge said she was satisfied Mr Carroll had a more limited involvement than Ms Condon had described to the court and that Ms Condon, with the passage of time, had conflated the involvement of different people in the matter.

She rejected claims of negligent misstatement on the part of Mr Carroll or that AIB had knowledge of Mr Ashcroft’s “fraudulent propensities”.

She also rejected Ms Condon’s claim of negligence in relation to both banks and Mr Carroll.

The judge said a claim in relation to the purchase of the house for Ms Condon in Douglas, Co Cork, was “bizarre”.

Ms Condon had admitted in evidence she knew Mr Ashcroft set up a bank account to show she had funds of £30,000 (€38,000) to buy the house and knew the money was to be withdrawn 24 hours after she got approval for a loan from ACC. Ms Condon was party to a deception and a lie being told to ACC, the judge said.

In her action, Ms Condon claimed she was “left without a penny” after AIB improperly honoured transactions by Mr Ashcroft on a trading account he had set up for their business partnership in the Anchor. She said AIB was aware of Mr Ashcroft’s activities which were under investigation by the Garda Fraud Squad in 2002.

She claimed Ashcroft represented to her that £210,000 was the purchase price and she had put the bulk of her half of that sum into the business when the actual purchase price was £140,000.

He also persuaded her to take out a further £150,000 mortgage with Bank of Ireland to convert the upstairs of the Anchor into two apartments although she believes only £60,000 was actually spent on that work.

The court heard the Anchor was repossessed in October 2002 and Ms Condon had lost all the money she invested in it. Ms Condon had previously taken proceedings in relation to the same matters in 2002 against Mr Ashcroft and later obtained a judgment in default against him.