Fraud bureau still searches for Taylor

The whereabouts of Mr Tony Taylor and his wife, Shirley, who are at the centre of a Garda fraud inquiry, has yet to be established by the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation.

While the High Court was told this week that Mrs Taylor intended to return to Dublin to make a statement, it is unclear if she and her husband are in the same location.

The Garda is conducting a criminal investigation into the handling by the Taylors of their investment company and the liquidator who has been appointed, Mr Patrick McSwiney, of BDO Simpson Xavier, is seeking to have them made liable for their company's debts.

When they disappeared in August 1996 and the company, Taylor and Associated Financial Services (TAFS), was put into liquidation, an examination of the books revealed that funds invested by 17 of the company's investors had been mismanaged.

The company had more than 1,200 clients who had invested in excess of £30 million. For the bulk of the clients the books were in order and their investments were safe. The money involved has since been returned or handed over to new investment advisers.

However, for 17 unfortunate clients their money was missing. These people thought the £1.8 million they had invested had grown to £2.5 million. In fact their money was gone. The affairs of these clients were dealt with by Mr Taylor, and possibly Mrs Taylor. For a number of years prior to his disappearance, Mr Taylor had begun to mishandle the affairs of these clients, borrowing from one to keep up the appearances of another. The mess had grown until it was entirely out of hand. In August 1996 the Taylors panicked and fled.

Before they did, they sold their two cars his a 1992 300SE Mercedes and hers a BMW convertible. The vehicles were personally owned. The £30,000 to £40,000 they got for the sale and whatever they had in their personal bank accounts, are the only funds the couple are known to have brought with them. They are not believed to have had hidden funds.

Of the 17 investors who lost funds, two are understood to have had quite small amounts invested. One of the 17 was the Society of St Vincent de Paul. A bequest of £500,000 earmarked for Sunshine House, Balbriggan, Co Dublin, a holiday centre for disadvantaged children from the greater Dublin area, had been invested by the society with Mr Taylor in 1991. When Mr Taylor disappeared it was found that £185,000 of this money could not be accounted for. A charitable fund linked with a semi-state has since made good the loss for the children's centre.

Under Section 204 of the Companies Act 1990, directors of a company can be made liable for the debts of that company if they fail to keep proper books. Such an action is now being taken by Mr McSwiney against Mr and Mrs Taylor and it is likely the case will come before the courts in the Autumn.

Papers have been filed on Mrs Taylor through her solicitor and earlier this week the High Court was told she intended to come to Dublin to swear an affidavit.

No word has been heard from Mr Taylor since August 1996. Papers have been served on him through his son, who lives in London. It is unclear whether Mrs Taylor is going to claim that her husband controlled the business, that she did not understand what was happening, and that she should not be held liable.

The couple's home was sold in November 1996 and more than £400,000 lodged with the courts. Mrs Taylor has said she will seek her share of these funds.

Another issue which has to be decided is the culpability, if any, of the other directors of TAFS.

Under the provisions of Section 150 of the Companies Act, those persons who were directors of the company for the two years prior to August 1996, will be required to explain to the courts why they should not have their right to operate as company directors restricted. This issue is likely to come to court after the Section 204 issue has been ruled on.

Apart from the Taylors the other TAFS directors have co-operated with the liquidator. None have been found to have been involved with the investors who lost their funds, or to have been involved in any misappropriation of funds. The issue likely to be examined by the court is whether they did all they could do, in the circumstances, to discover what Mr Taylor was up to.

The books and records kept by the company in relation to the 1,200 unaffected investors were well kept. What books and records there were in relation to the 17 mismanaged accounts controlled by Mr Taylor is unclear.

Some records were found in the Taylors' Ballsbridge home when officials from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment entered the building after the couple's disappearance.

Meanwhile the Bureau of Fraud Investigations has rejected reports that it is about to seek the extradition of Mr Taylor.