A FINANCIAL adviser accused of money-laundering told a court yesterday that he had received £3 million in mixed sterling notes from Bulgarians for a sand and gravel pit in Co Offaly.
Ted Cunningham said they had paid him in cash because they did not trust the banks in their own country.
Mr Cunningham took the witness box yesterday on the 34th day of his trial at Cork Circuit Criminal Court and explained that he had received £3 million from some Bulgarian businessmen for the sand and gravel pit in a number of payments.
Mr Cunningham denies 20 charges of money-laundering including one of possessing £3,010,380 at Farran between December 20th, 2004 and February 16th, 2005, knowing or believing it to be the proceeds of robbery at the Northern Bank Cash Centre in Belfast.
Mr Cunningham explained how he had been introduced to Bulgarians Slavtoho Andossorov, his son Georgi Andossorov and Emil Petrov.
Mr Cunningham said that the three Bulgarians were seeking investments outside of Bulgaria and travelled to Ireland in 2004 to look at a sand and gravel pit in Shinrone co-owned by Mr Cunningham.
The court had earlier heard that the sand and gravel pit was 25 per cent owned by Mr Cunningham with engineering contractor David O’Sullivan, accountant Gerard Murphy and his business partner in Chesterton Finance, Irene Johnston, each owning 25 per cent.
The Bulgarians agreed to pay €4 million for the pit, said Mr Cunningham.
“We did a deal on the pit. I did the deal with Georgi. A price was agreed to go on the contract of €2 million and €2 million to be paid by way of commission. Funds would have to be declared to Revenue,” said Mr Cunningham.
However because Bulgaria was not in the EU, the Bulgarians could not buy the pit in their own name so he and former Bank of Scotland (Ireland) chairman, Phil Flynn, who had a 10 per cent stake in Chesterton Finance, agreed to set up a company to help them acquire the pit.
Mr Cunningham told the jury how he had received some £3 million from the Bulgarians for the pit in a number of payments. He said he had given some of the sterling to Ballincollig car dealer Dan Joe Guerin as collateral against a loan of €120,000 that Mr Guerin had given to David O’Sullivan to enable him to buy a share in the Shinrone pit.
Mr Cunningham explained that the £250,000 he had given Tullamore jewellers, John and Jack Douglas, to mind for him was from the money given to him by the Bulgarians. He gave it to the Douglases because they had a safe in their house.
The case continues.