Multi-million-dollar bank drafts found during an investigation of a Dublin finance company were fakes made from photocopying or laser printing machines, an expert has told a fraud trial.
Mr Charlie Rowland, a manager at the Delarue Smurfit printing company, said two international bank drafts valued at $15 million and $40.2 million did not have the correct colour or holograms guaranteeing their authenticity.
Mr Patrick Gageby SC, prosecuting, said the drafts were found during a Garda investigation into World Wide Clearing and Finance which was based in Lower Baggot Street, Dublin. Both drafts were purportedly issued by Bank of Ireland and drawn on Chase Manhattan Bank in New York.
Mr Rowland said the $40.2 million draft was made out in the name of "Jan Otto" and the $15 million draft was made out to a company called "Leslie Trading".
Another forged Bank of Ireland bank draft was made out in the name of "Plasando Lda, Lisboa" and was also the wrong colour and lacking a hologram.
The court heard that one of five men accused of involvement in World Wide Clearing and Finance told gardai he was hired to keep a list of the company's international clients, that he was not involved in decision-making within the company and had never forged any bank drafts.
Mr Thomas O'Brien made his statement to gardai after he and another man were arrested while travelling with a German businessman to a bank in College Green, Dublin.
Sgt Dennis Heneghan read from a statement in which Mr O'Brien explained that the businessman, Mr Heinz Althoff, came to Dublin with the expectation of receiving a $56.5 million payment.
The prosecution alleges the five men on trial were trying to dupe Mr Althoff and other World Wide Clearing and Finance clients out of multi-million-pound payments while offering them fraudulent bank drafts made out in massive sums.
Mr O'Brien told gardai he did not know what the people running the company were going to take from Mr Althoff because they decided the fee charged for business transactions. He had never created forged bank drafts and had not seen anyone else doing it. Sgt Heneghan denied a suggestion by Mr Martin Gilblin SC, for Mr O'Brien, that his client had drunk alcohol before questioning.
The five men have pleaded not guilty to trying to defraud Mr Althoff by forming a fraudulent company and forging or counterfeiting US dollar drafts in large amounts.
They are also charged with claiming bank drafts in their possession were worth $32 million and with seeking $2 million from Mr Terry Smith in exchange for them. The trial continues.