Family fund moved money, Flood told

A family trust fund set up in Jersey by a builder who admitted making political donations to Mr Ray Burke moved hundreds of thousands of pounds between offshore accounts, the Flood Tribunal heard today.

Mr Ray Burke

The activities of Beachside Holdings were inconsistent with its function as a family trust, Mr Simon Howard from the Jersey legal firm of Bedell and Cristintold the tribunal.

The sole named beneficiaries of the trust were Mr Thomas Brennan, wife Catherine and their children and grandchildren.

One particular deal, involving the payment of £50,000 to Broadway Estates for a property deal in London, was contrary to Beachside Holdings’ function as "a family trust", Mr Howard said.

Broadway Estates was part-owned by Mr Joe McGowan, a partner of Mr Brennan who also admitted making political donations to Mr Burke.

There were no records of any proceeds of this property deal returning to the accounts of Beachside Holdings, Mr Howard said.

Mr Howard said his firm, which acted as the trustees of Beachside Holdings, had not formally endorsed any of these payments.

Lawyers for the tribunal were this morning trying to establish why this trust should have moved funds to a number of offshore bank accounts. Transfers included a total of £215,000 to an account in Liechtenstein. The holder of this account was uncertain, Mr Howard said.

Mr Patrick Hanratty SC also questioned the solicitor on payments of £5,000 to an account in the Isle of Man.Mr McGowan and Mr Brennan had claimed in evidence this was money owed to Bedell and Cristin for services.

Mr Howard said there were no records of this and that the firm had no accounts with the bank in question. "I cannot explain why this money was transferred," he said.