Denis Casey withdraws appeal against severity of fraud sentence

The former chief executive of Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P), jailed for his role in a €7.2 billion fraud about the true health of Anglo Irish Bank in 2008, has withdrawn an appeal against the severity of his prison sentence.

Last month, the Court of Appeal upheld the criminal convictions of Denis Casey and John Bowe, who were found guilty by a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court in July 2016 of conspiring to mislead investors by using interbank loans to make Anglo appear €7.2 billion more valuable between March 1st and September 30th, 2008.

Both men had denied the charge throughout one of the longest criminal trials in the history of the State.

Judge Martin Nolan sentenced Casey (57), the former chief executive of IL&P from Raheny in Dublin, to two years and nine months imprisonment, and Bowe (53), the former head of capital markets with Anglo Irish Bank from Glasnevin in Dublin, to two years imprisonment on July 29th, 2016.

Casey was due to appeal against the severity of his sentence in the Court of Appeal. However, his barrister, Michael O'Higgins SC, formally withdrew his client's appeal against the sentence on Thursday.

Mr O'Higgins has asked three-judge court to amend a particular point in its 138-page judgment dismissing the men's appeal because, Mr O'Higgins said, his side wished to litigate the point in the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court jurisdiction

Mr O’Higgins said he was concerned the Supreme Court would not have jurisdiction to entertain the point if it was not in the Court of Appeal’s judgment. He said it was a technical point and wished to emphasise, in the “strongest possible terms”, that he was not seeking to reopen or reargue the appeal which was heard over five days in the Court of Appeal in March.

President of the Court of Appeal Mr Justice Seán Ryan told Mr O’Higgins on Thursday that the three-judge court was considering the matter and would respond in a manner the court deemed appropriate.

Mr Justice Ryan said it was the first time he had come across such a request. In circumstances where the appeal would not be reopened, Mr Justice Ryan said the court would consider the matter as it was laid before them and deliver its decision in the next legal term.