A vehicle belonging to the chief executive of the Quinn Group was destroyed last night in an arson attack.
The BMW 4x4 owned by Paul O’Brien was targeted while parked in the driveway of a house in Foxlodge Woods, a housing estate in Ratoath, Co Meath.
Mr O’Brien took over as chief executive from Liam McCaffrey, a long-time sidekick of group founder Sean Quinn, in April following Anglo Irish Bank’s decision to appoint a share receiver to the group.
Anglo took charge of the group as security against its €2.88 billion loans to the State-owned bank. The debt relates largely to Mr Quinn’s ill-fated share-buying spree in Anglo prior to the financial crash in 2008.
In a statement, the Quinn Group condemned the attack "Fortunately, Paul and his family were not in the house at the time," it said.
The group alleged that the perpetrators of the attack had been behind “a series of incidents aimed at damaging Quinn Group property and machinery” which began almost immediately after Sean Quinn lost control of the group.
“The personal nature of this cowardly attack represents a serious crossing of the line,” it said. “We will not be intimidated by the actions of a small group of thugs and vandals and would ask anyone who has information about their actions to contact either the gardaí or the PSNI.
“All of the incidents which have taken place since April last are clearly aimed at destabilising the group’s businesses and putting the livelihoods of thousands of Quinn workers at risk,” the statement said.
A Garda spokesman appealed to anyone who noticed any suspicious behaviour in the area or with information to contact them Ashbourne Garda station on (01) 8010600, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
Sinn Féin MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone Michelle Gildernew called on the perpetrators to stop targeting the Quinn Group.
"This is not only a disgraceful act on him and his family but also on the thousands of people who depend directly or indirectly on the Quinn Group for employment," she said.
