A Swiss woman used an £80,000 loan from an Irish bank to buy herself a luxury car, Cork Circuit Criminal Court was told yesterday.
Ms Maria Bernadetta Jehle (47) of The Priory, Cobh, Co Cork, who is at the centre of the money-laundering trial, said she bought "a nice big Mercedes" with the personal loan from AIB in Cahir, Co Tipperary, in about 1990-91.
When Judge Patrick Moran asked her to specify the model, Ms Jehle answered: "A 260E special with a special hydraulic driving seat." She said she needed the car because of back problems and she bought it in Switzerland with part of the loan.
Under cross-examination by the State's senior counsel, Ms Maureen Clarke, Ms Jehle detailed her property dealings in the State, her financial arrangements and her business relationship with Cahir property dealer Mr John Simpson and his company.
The court heard that within a year of arriving here in 1990, Ms Jehle bought a cottage in Tipperary for £7,000, which she renovated, a house in Athlone for her daughter (then aged 15) for £90,000, and The Priory for £350,000. Her mother had bought another house in Mallow, Co Cork.
She was involved in interesting Swiss clients in Irish property, she said. They preferred old properties. The case, at the end of the eighth week, continues today.