Quinn son-in-law ‘transferred €19m Russian property for €2,500’

A €19m property in Russia was sold by a Sean Quinn family company to another for about €2,500 in a transaction allegedly “orchestrated” by a son-in-law of the businessman, the High Court was told yesterday.

Paul Gallagher SC, for the former Anglo Irish Bank, suggested to Peter Darragh Quinn, Sean Quinn’s, that the sale of the property was orchestrated by Stephen Kelly, husband of Sean Quinn’s daughter Aoife, and it would only be logical if the purchasing company was connected to the Quinns.

Peter Quinn said he was not involved in the matter, and added there was no logical or commercial sense involved.

Peter Quinn also said that, because of the way Anglo had acted towards the Quinn family, they had tried to provide as little information as possible to Anglo about matters related to their international property group (IPG).

The cross-examination of Peter Quinn, acting general manager of international property assets by the Quinn Group from 2009, concluded yesterday in the hearing before Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne of the bank’s application for orders for attachment and, if necessary, committal against him, Sean Quinn Sr and Sean Quinn Jr for alleged contempt.

The bank contends the three acted in contempt of the June and July 2011 orders. In denying the claims, they have argued various steps to place assets beyond Anglo’s reach were carried out prior to the orders.

Among the claims against Peter Quinn is that he participated in the assignment of Quinn companies’ loans totalling €163m for nominal consideration to Galfis Overseas Ltd, a Belize-registered company allegedly controlled by the Quinns, on or after July 20, 2011. It is also alleged he and Sean Quinn Sr deliberately backdated assignments of multi-million euro loans so it would appear they occurred on April 4 2011, prior to the court orders.

The proceedings were adjourned yesterday to resume on Apr 30 or May 1. Sean Quinn Sr will be the next witness.

In re-examination yesterday by Brian O’Moore SC, for the Quinns, Peter Quinn said he had been concentrating on the contempt proceedings, in which the bank had filed 26 affidavits, and not on details of wider issues in the bank’s proceedings against various Quinn defendants over €500m assets in the IPG.

There was “no master plan” by the Quinn side in relation to the IPG, and his concern was in relation to unsecured assets. His wish had been for the bank and the Quinns to have thrashed things out sensibly. A number of actions related to IPG assets may have made no logical or commercial sense but the context was the family felt they would get nothing if the bank controlled the assets, he said.