Financial Services

Breifne O’Brien pleads guilty to 14 counts of theft

Businessman had denied all charges, but changed plea on the day his trial was to start

Mr O’Brien (51), Kilmore, The Gallan, Granitefield, Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin was charged with 19 counts of theft involving sums totalling about €11 million from five individuals between 2006 and 2008

Wed Jun 18 2014 - 14:57

Businessman Breifne O’Brien has pleaded guilty to multiple charges of multi-million euro theft and deception totalling over €10 million between 2003 and 2008.

O’Brien (52), of Kilmore, Monkstown Grove, South County Dublin, faced 19 charges of theft and 19 charges of deception from five individuals.

A further seven charges of deception involving €1.9 million relate to one of those five people between 2003 and 2008.

O’Brien had denied all charges, but changed his plea to guilty on the day his trial was due to start.

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He pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to 14 sample counts representing the total amount of charges.

They included stealing money and dishonestly inducing people to invest in bogus shipping and insurance schemes, and also bogus property schemes in Paris, Manchester and Hamburg.

The allegations of deception involve five people namely Martin O’Brien, Pat Doyle, Evan Newall, Louis Dowley and Daniel Maher.

It was alleged that about €4 million was stolen from Mr Dowley, a Tipperary dairy farmer.

Another amount was a sum of €2.1 million which O’Brien admitted stealing from Evan Newall between 8 and 15 June, 2007 at National Irish Bank, Stillorgan, Co Dublin.

Other offences took place at NIB Donnybrook and Ulster Bank, Donnybrook, Dublin 4.

Luán O Braonáin SC, prosecuting, said O'Brien's plea was acceptable to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The court heard the sentencing will take one day.

Patrick McGrath SC, defending, said his client has no previous convictions.

In May 2013, Mr O'Brien lost a High Court judicial review challenge arguing he could not get a fair trial due to adverse publicity in the print and broadcast media

He appealed the outcome to the Supreme Court, which ruled that the trial could proceed any time after June 2014.

Earlier this month, O’Brien made a separate application to bring a fresh judicial review challenge, on grounds arising from a recent Supreme Court ruling concerning rights of detained persons to have solicitors present during interviews.

Judge Patricia Ryan adjourned the case for mention next week, June 25, when a date will be set for sentencing.

She remanded O’Brien on continuing bail.

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