A man who gave evidence in a criminal trial despite a death threat had his sentence adjourned in a fraud case, heard partially in Irish at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court yesterday. Micheal O Bleithin (57), a father of seven children, of Victoria Lane, Rathgar, pleaded guilty to forging another person's name on an EBS acknowledgment slip for £10,000 and to obtaining £10,000 from an AIB bank by pretending he was another person.
Judge Cyril Kelly told the jury panel that by his guilty plea O Bleithin had obviated the need for a trial.
Part of the hearing of evidence following the guilty plea was conducted through Irish by Judge Kelly, prosecuting counsel Mr George Birmingham and defence counsel Mr Peter Charleton SC (with Mr Seamas O Tuathail).
O Bleithin told Mr Charleton he received nothing from the crime, which he regretted bitterly. He had paid £2,000 as partcompensation to the EBS and would be able to pay up to a further £3,000 by next March.
He greatly feared he would come out of prison "in a box" if jailed for the offence because of the evidence he gave in a criminal trial. Sgt Tony Mulligan agreed with Mr Birmingham that O Bleithin returned from Italy to give evidence in an armed robbery trial despite threats to his life.
Sgt Mulligan said O Bleithin went into the EBS office in Rathmines on May 6th, 1994, with a passbook in another person's name. Three days later O Bleithin he got £10,000 cash from a bank for the cheque. The man in whose name the £10,000 was withdrawn was not at a loss because AIB and EBS accepted they had been negligent.
Judge Kelly adjourned sentence to March 23rd, 1998, and said if O Bleithin paid a further £3,000 by then he would deal with the matter non-custodially.