Anglo trial one of Ireland’s biggest ever

The high-profile trial of three former Anglo Irish Bank executives including the bank’s former chairman, Seán FitzPatrick, will open at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court today.

The case, which is likely to be one of the biggest in Irish legal history, arises out of the long-running investigation into the collapsed bank by the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement.

Mr FitzPatrick and his former colleagues, Anglo’s finance director William McAteer and head of Irish operations Pat Whelan, are each charged on 16 counts of unlawfully providing financial assistance to individuals for the purpose of buying shares in Anglo.