Cab sells 'General's' house for €904,000

The family home of murdered crime boss Martin Cahill has been sold at auction for €904,000, significantly below the asking price for neighbouring houses.

"It's a steal," commented one observer as a young Dublin couple, accompanied by their newborn baby, outbid five other parties at the auction of the property yesterday.

The Criminal Assets Bureau, which placed the house at 17 Cowper Downs, Rathmines, on the market, said the sale would realise about €700,000 for the Exchequer once costs were deducted.

The buyers declined to be interviewed other than to say they were pleased to have bought the property.

With other houses in the area fetching about €1.2 million, the lower selling price of the "General's" home is attributable to its poor state and the notoriety of its former occupant.

The Cab, which took possession of the 125 sq m house from Cahill family members at the start of May, had the house stripped and the kitchen removed. Holes were made in ceiling and walls during searches, and the garden was dug up after a bag of stolen chalices was discovered at the rear.

The head of the Cab, Chief Supt Felix McKenna, who attended the auction along with other bureau officers, expressed satisfaction with the price achieved for the house.

Mr McKenna, who in his younger days was part of the Garda round-the-clock surveillance on Cahill, said he was satisfied that, following the recent searches, there would be no further need to revisit the house.

The chalices found in the garden had been stolen from a church three years ago, he explained, and this was being investigated by local gardaí.

In spite of a full attendance at the sale, auctioneer John Ryan of Gunne Residential had a hard time coaxing bids from reluctant bidders.

Bidding eventually opened at the disclosed reserve of €775,000 and moved slowly upward to €875,000.

The successful bidders entered at €880,000 and withstood challenges from a number of fresh bidders to capture the house, to a burst of spontaneous applause, for €904,000.

The four-bed house, which boasts fake Georgian pillars, an ensuite bedroom and a large back garden, dates from 1984. Cahill, one of the first residents of the estate, was gunned down in August 1994, shortly before the IRA ceasefire.

Fianna Fáil TD and MEP, Eoin Ryan, called for the proceeds of the auction to be reinvested directly into community and anti-drug projects in the local area.

"This cash would represent a significant boost for community projects. It should be used to help local people who have been hit by the drugs crisis and for the provision of local sports and recreation facilities," Mr Ryan said.

He would be raising the matter with the Minister for Justice.