Revenue inquiries net €170m in three months

Investigations by the office of the Revenue Commissioners have netted more than €170 million in three months, figures released today show.

The quarterly tax defaulters' list covers the period between July 1st and September 30th this year and features 141 published settlements totalling €31.58 million.

Of the 141 published settlements, 64 were for amounts exceeding €100,000; a further 17 exceeded €500,000 of which seven exceeded €1,000,000.

Settlements by 25 individuals or firms, totalling €6.97 million related to bogus non-resident accounts.

Four settlements totalling €1.35 million relate to Ansbacher account holders.

Other details include 25 settlements totalling €11.03 million relating to Revenue investigations into offshore funds; 26 settlements totalling €3.53 million related to Revenue's single premium insurance product investigation.

The published settlements reflect only a portion only of all Revenue audits and investigations in the three-month period to September 30th last. The total yield in the period was €170.88 million.

The largest published settlement was for €2,748,860 by Company Director Anthony Fogarty from Co Wicklow as a result of the Revenue's offshore assets investigations.

Hardware Merachants P Boland Ltd also from Co Wicklow made a settlement €2,251,140 for under-declaration of PAYE/PRSI.

The third largest settlement was for €1,815,559 by retired company director and farmer Seamus Quinn from Co Sligo in relation to revenue bogus non-resident account case.

Meanwhile, a secretary hired by the late Charles Haughey's accountant also made a tax settlement with the Revenue for €120,000.

Audrey Joan Williams, who worked for the late Des Traynor — the man who inspired the Ansbacher tax dodging scandal — is among the names on the defaulters list.

Ms Williams from Stradbrook Grove, Blackrock, Co Dublin made the settlement for under-declaration of income tax as part of the long-running Ansbacher probe.

The Revenue also secured a settlement of €543,000 over the tax affairs of Philip Monahan, the late director of Monarch Properties — a development firm embroiled in investigations by the Mahon Tribunal.

Additional reporting PA