Assets of former Adam Clayton assistant frozen indefinitely

THE former personal assistant of Adam Clayton has had her assets frozen indefinitely over allegations she defrauded €1.8 million from the U2 guitarist.

Mr Clayton sacked Carol Hawkins late last year after she allegedly used his debit and credit cards to splash out on cars, a house and jewellery.

The High Court yesterday heard that legal representatives for the former PA are examining an employment contract which they claim contains a mediation clause.

The legal teams were also given a timetable for exchanging documents, including those detailing the allegations Ms Hawkins is facing.

Counsel for Ms Hawkins Ken Fogarty agreed to an order preventing her from allowing her assets to slip below €1.8m until further notice. Mr Fogarty also said there were several clauses in her employment contract, dated from July last year, that were of significance and may benefit both parties.

Neither party was in court and no date was fixed for the next hearing.

Last month, lawyers for Mr Clayton, from Rathfarnham, south Dublin, said the allegations went back to September 2008, when Ms Hawkins confessed to using €13,000 of the musician’s money. She had been dealt with in “a compassionate manner” and was kept on in her job, it was stated.

However, it then emerged Ms Hawkins, without the authorisation of Mr Clayton, had used his credit cards for her own use and for her family’s benefit, his counsel claimed.

She had denied she had bought a house, cars or flashy jewellery.

When it was suggested to her she had been withdrawing about €600 twice daily for a period of 13 months, she had said she had used it as needed.

She also acknowledged she had lodged money into her own bank account and had breached her contract.

An investigation by two accountants, including Kieran Wallace of KPMG, reported that sums of up to €1.8m seemed to have been misappropriated.

It appeared that an apartment in New York had been bought and Mr Clayton was concerned that assets might be dissipated and that was why he sought the freezing order.