Five handed suspended sentences for €1m mortgage fraud

Five people have each been given 18 months suspended sentences for their part in a near €1 million mortgage fraud.

The elaborate fraud involved a number of people making mortgage applications to Bank of Ireland using false driving licences, PPS numbers and bank accounts over a two year period.

The five were among a group of eight people who pleaded guilty to dishonestly obtaining mortgages by deception contrary to Section 7 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences Act) 2001.

At Cork Circuit Criminal Court, Judge Sean O Donnabhain said it was a elaborate fraud as he imposed the 18 month suspended sentences on five of the eight accused.

Those sentenced were Kathleen Russell (67) of Inniscarra Road, Fairhill, Cork and Elaine Marshall (29) also of Inniscarra Road, Fairhill, Cork; Shane Slattery (37) from Great William O’Brien St, Blackpool; Patrick Crowley (29) from Church View, Churchtown, Mallow and Wendy Briant (54) from Greenane, Kanturk.

Judge O Donnnabhain indicated he was willing to impose an 18 months suspended sentence on Micheal Jewitt (34) of Oliver Plunkett Place, Doneraile in Co Cork. However, he said he wanted to see if Jewitt was suitable to do 240 hours community service in lieu of a prison sentence and adjourned his case until February 16th for a probation report.

He explained that Jewitt differed from the other five co-accused in they had no significant previous convictions, whereas Jewitt had previous convictions for larceny and burglary.

He also adjourned sentencing on Patrick O’Connor (43) of Annabella Park, Mallow until June 10th.

He issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Patsy Walsh (67) of Tinahely, Co Wicklow, who failed to attend the court hearing at Washington Street in Cork.

Sgt Mary Skehan of the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation in Cork outlined the background to the fraud which involved false mortgages being obtained on six properties in Cork, Kerry and Tipperary.

She said Walshwas a builder and developer who organised a scam to obtain mortgages totalling €970,000.

Walsh, who used several aliases, built four properties. While he was not the legal owner of the properties, he was the beneficial owner, the court heard. He recruited the others to assist him obtain mortgages on them.

Walsh created false identities for the others, using fake driving licences, false P60s and fake PPS numbers from Russell, who ran a bookkeeping service.

Walsh introduced the people with the false identities to mortgage brokers and got them to sign false papers before a solicitor to obtain the mortgages on the six properties.

The six mortgages included one for €160,650 on a house at Powerline, Moyvane, Listowel, Co Kerry and one for €126,000 at Lacey Avenue, Templemore, Co Tipperary.

They also included two mortgages of €161,460, €157,500 and €157,000 on two houses at Park View Close in Buttevant and a third at Saddler’s Lane in Buttevant, all in Co Cork.

The last mortgage related to a property at Douglaside, Gortroe, Lombardstown near Mallow in Co Cork on which Bank of Ireland paid out a mortgage of €207,000, the court heard.

Sgt Skehan said Walsh paid his co-accused varying sums, with Jewitt receiving €5,000 and the other sums ranging from a few hundred euros to €1,000.

O’Connor used the money he received for a mortgage on one of the Park View properties to pay off a mortgage on another house.

He used the proceeds of the fake mortgage from Bank of Ireland to clear a mortgage he had with AIB Bank on the Saddler's Lane property in Buttevant, said Sgt Skehan.

The court heard Bank of Ireland was still trying to redeem the titles on five of the houses. It had taken possession of the sixth property which it had sold - at a loss - for €38,000.

Judge O Donnabhain said it was a very serious offence and all seven accused before the court had knowingly involved themselves in a deliberate and elaborate deception.

But he noted all seven had co-operated fully with gardaí and saved the State the expense and effort of a long and complicated trial.

He noted it was somewhat like“Hamlet without the prince”, given Walsh had failed to show up for the hearing.

He imposed the 18 months suspended sentences on five of the accused, adjourned sentencing on the other two and issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Walsh.