A LIMERICK mother who duped two airline charter companies out of €115,000 by hiring aircraft under false pretences to bring Munster rugby fans to away games has avoided going to jail.
Pamela Hickey (38), of Ashford, Patrickswell, Co Limerick, used aliases, fictitious travel agency names and forged payment documents to secure two aircraft for return flights to European Cup rugby matches in the UK and France.
When arranging to charter one flight from Shannon to Gatwick in January 2005, Hickey falsely claimed that JP McManus was a silent investor in her tour operating business.
The mother-of-two pleaded guilty at Limerick Circuit Court to two charges of deception and a forgery charge. She admitted obtaining the services of the Air Charter Services company in December 2004 to bring 180 Munster fans on a return flight from Shannon to Toulouse.
The court heard the company lost €77,000 as a result of not being paid by Hickey for the aircraft.
The following month she chartered the services of Monarch Airlines, and its sister company First Aviation Ltd, again under false pretences, to bring Munster fans on a return flight from Shannon to Gatwick.
In this case the company lost £34,000 (€39,000). Neither company has been compensated.
In both cases Hickey supplied a false name and false travel agent documents to acquire the service, and a false AIB Paylink funds transfer document, which purported to show the funds had been transferred to the company.
Judge Carroll Moran said the deception was of such a serious sum of money that it warranted a prison sentence, but because of the mitigating factors he would suspend the jail term and imposed a two-year suspended prison sentence.