Posted by GUILTY PLEA |
Man involved in property fraud jailed for two years for theft and money laundering
Roche with an address in Zaragoza, Spain, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to theft and money laundering
Today at 09:04
A man who got involved in a real estate fraud has been jailed for two years for theft and aiding and abetting money laundering.
Martin Roche (62) who currently lives in Spain, agreed to become the director of a company in 2012 that encouraged investment in a fictitious social housing scheme in Brazil. The company was later struck off in November 2014.
Two men agreed to invest funds on the promise of a certain return on their investment, with one man contributing €183,444.54 to the scheme and another man contributing €5,000 and $6,900 USD.
Roche with an address in Zaragoza, Spain, pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to theft and money laundering on dates between 2012 and 2013.
The court heard that various bank accounts, owned by Roche were used to facilitate the laundering of the cash with a total of €271,958 passed through these various accounts. At one point, Roche stole €69,000.
Detective Garda David Egan said that the man who was in charge of the operation has not been identified by
Various official documents including partnership agreements and contracts had been given to the victims of the fraud but they contacted gardaí when they did not receive the promised return on their investments.
Judge Martin Nolan said that Roche’s bank account had been used to launder money and that he also stole some of the cash himself.
The judge accepted his pleas of guilty and evidence that Roche co-operated with the investigation but he said it was “serious criminal behaviour” and that Roche involved himself with “particular dodgy individuals”.
Judge Nolan said Roche’s misbehaviour “is too great to avoid a custodial term” before he jailed him for two years.
Det Gda Egan said Roche agreed to become director of a company that was responsible for development and selling of real estate and was an authorised signature of the bank accounts linked to the company.
The two victims later told gardaí that they received cold calls from a male advising of an investment opportunity in a social housing development in Brazil and were promised both a 15% and 30% return on their investment.
The gardaí were notified when the company promised the funds but they were never processed. The two men tried to make contact with the company but their queries remained unanswered.
Gardaí contacted the Brazilian authorities but it soon became apparent that there was no such development.
Roche was nominated as a suspect as he was the signatures on the accounts and had been registered as a director of the company.
Det Gda Egan said a total of €294,618 had been lodged into the account over the period and €271,958 had been transferred between the various accounts.
Det Gda Egan agreed with Seoirse Ó Dúnlaing BL, defending, that he had been used “as a front” by another individual, an individual that was identifying vulnerable people and preying on them.
He further accepted that Roche had a severe gambling addiction at the time of the offending.
Mr Ó Dúnlaing told the court that his client had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity because he “wanted to put matters right”.
Counsel also told the court that a number of years ago Roche came to the assistance of a man who had just been attacked and helped save the man’s life.
He asked the court to accept that Roche is someone “who can do good” and that although it was a sophisticated offence, he was used by others in this case.
Who Watches the Watchers? 