Nephew denies knowledge of Quinn family trust

A NEPHEW of bankrupt businessman Seán Quinn has told the High Court he knew nothing about a trust set up for the Quinn family, despite several signatures of his witnessing documents related to that trust.

He was in the habit of signing “bundles” of documents and while no one in the family had said anything to him about a trust, he “would not be surprised by anything” in the “debacle” between Anglo Irish Bank and the Quinns, Peter Darragh Quinn said.

Mr Quinn also said he did not know anything about what happened to a sum of $4.5 million (€3.4 million) moved between accounts of a Russian company of which he was the sole signatory.

No one, he said, was in “overall control” of steps taken in various international jurisdictions with a view to putting multimillion-euro assets of the Quinn international property group (IPG) beyond the reach of Anglo.

There was “no huge overall strategy”; it was “very much a fire-fighting thing” and actions taken were “reactive”, in response to what Anglo did. If that led to court cases in every jurisdiction, “so be it”, he added.

Mr Quinn said he was never involved at “a higher level” and had no involvement in court proceedings involving the Quinns in Cyprus and Sweden concerning Quinn companies.

The cross-examination of Mr Quinn, acting general manager of international property assets held by the Quinn Group from 2009, continued yesterday in the hearing before Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne of the bank’s application for orders for attachment and committal against him, Seán Quinn snr and Seán Quinn jnr for alleged contempt.

The bank contends the three acted in contempt of court orders of June and July 2011 restraining dissipation of assets in the IPG. In denying those claims, they have argued various steps to place assets beyond Anglo’s reach were carried out prior to the orders.

On his fourth day in the witness box yesterday, Peter Quinn agreed with senior counsel Paul Gallagher, for IBRC, that incorrect information was given by the Quinn side to a court in Cyprus when it granted injunctions sought by the family against the bank.

Mr Quinn stressed he himself was not involved in the Cyprus case and said Aoife Quinn had dealt with matters in proceedings in Cyprus and Sweden.

He agreed that, while the family had sought injunctions restraining changes in the structure and shareholdings of various Quinn companies, steps were taken by them in the days prior to the June 27th, 2011, Cyprus court hearing that altered shareholdings.

He agreed the Cyprus court was given incorrect information in an affidavit by Aoife Quinn concerning the May/June 2011 bankruptcy of a Russian company, Finansstroy (of which Mr Quinn was general director at the time). That was because Ms Quinn “misunderstood” a sequence of events related to that company, he said.

He agreed the Cyprus court was told various Russian companies in the IPG were wholly owned subsidiaries of Cyprus companies in the IPG when they were not, due to withdrawals of shareholdings allegedly signed by Aoife Quinn on June 20th, 2011, purportedly as a director of a Cypriot company in the IPG, Carcer Management Ltd. [The bank disputes that Ms Quinn was in fact a director].

When Mr Gallagher put to Mr Quinn that a sworn statement by him describing Finansstroy as a wholly owned subsidiary of Carcer was a lie if the withdrawal was executed by Aoife Quinn as alleged, Mr Quinn said the withdrawal was executed and his description of the status of Finansstroy was incorrect and a “material oversight” but not a lie.

Mr Gallagher also asked several questions in the context of the bank’s claim of a systematic transfer of shares in various Russian companies in the IPG to offshore entities primarily registered in Belize and Panama.

Mr Quinn agreed, during a one-day trip by him to Dubai on June 20th, 2011, he discussed setting up off-shore companies in Belize and Panama as well as a possible trust structure for proposed new business ventures for the family.

The case continues.