Anglo Jailings: ‘Team to protect CEO’s interests’

The charges against the three were built around two separate allegations. Firstly, that they omitted the name of Mr FitzPatrick’s brother-in-law, John Peter O’Toole, from a list of non-resident accounts which was to be handed over to Revenue.

Secondly, that they conspired to have Anglo’s IT department delete six other accounts connected to Mr FitzPatrick from the bank’s computer system.

At the sentencing hearing, Detective Sergeant Gerard Doyle from the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation told prosecuting counsel Dominic McGinn SC that in the late 1990s, Revenue was examining every bank in the country for non-resident accounts which may have been liable for DIRT (deposit interest retention tax).

Anglo submitted a “nil return” which meant that it claimed they held no such accounts. However, a considerable number of people later came forward under a tax amnesty to say they held non-resident accounts in the bank. As a result Revenue decided to investigate the bank in 2003.

In March 2003, Revenue got a High Court order compelling Anglo to hand over lists of non-resident accounts with more than Ir£10,000 in 1990, 1995 and 1999. It also began an audit of the bank.

A list was handed over to Revenue in November 2003 which didn’t contain the name of John Peter O’Toole, Mr FitzPatrick’s brother-in-law, despite this account falling into the parameters set out in the High Court order.

It later emerged that Mr FitzPatrick had several conversations with the bank’s head of compliance Brian Gillespie in which the CEO indicated that the account shouldn’t be disclosed to Revenue.

O’Mahoney also spoke with Mr Gillespie and told him not to include the O’Toole account without his say-so. The account was eventually disclosed to Revenue several months late at the behest of Mr Gillespie.

In October 2003 O’Mahoney put a task team together. Judge McCartan said that it was “designed on one hand to assist Revenue but also on the other hand to silently and secretly protect the interests of the chief executive”.

He said Maguire was assigned to the team to sift out any accounts that could embarrass Mr FitzPatrick. Meanwhile, Daly asked Mr Gillespie if he would delete an account if requested while he was on the team. He also had a similar conversation with O’Mahoney. Mr Gillespie refused and was reassigned.

O’Mahoney also asked the team leader, Zita Vance, the same question. She also refused and was reassigned.

Det Sgt Doyle detailed an email which was sent by Mr FitzPatrick’s personal assistant to O’Mahoney listing four account numbers connected to the O’Toole account. This email was sent on the same day that Daly told Revenue that it would receive the list of accounts it requested as part of the audit in the near future.

There was also evidence of emails between Maguire and IT staff in the bank. Maguire was requesting staff to delete six accounts connected to Mr FitzPatrick and to amend two others to distance them from the CEO. She also asked that they amend name and address details on one of the accounts in a way that left no trace.

The IT staff believed Maguire was passing on orders from higher-up but they were uncomfortable deleting accounts. The accounts were archived instead, in a way that made them appear deleted but still recoverable.

There were eight accounts connected to Mr FitzPatrick, the trial heard. They were Lock Ltd/Suzie Ltd, Carnahalla Ltd/Suzie Ltd, Lock Ltd, Carnahalla Ltd, Triumvirate Properties Ltd and Sean FitzPatrick Trust/Crohan O’Shea Trust as well as two accounts in the name of Mr O’Toole.

Counsel said there were unusual practices going on with the O’Toole account including that it was used to deal stock during the periods when bank directors were barred from trading. There were also large sums of money transferred in and out of the account by Mr FitzPatrick near the time of the bank’s year end returns.

Anglo’s then head of compliance Brian Gillespie said he was called into Mr FitzPatrick’s office in 2003 and told the O’Toole account was a real non-resident account and so shouldn’t be disclosed to Revenue. The witness said he replied that he had to return it to the Revenue as it was within the scope of the investigation.

He said that Mr FitzPatrick told him he “was losing sleep” over the matter.

Mr Gillespie said that in another meeting Mr FitzPatrick mentioned the name “Denis O’Brien” and referred to him as “my mate Denis” in the context of accounts being given to Revenue. Mr Gillespie assured him that Mr O’Brien’s account was not on any list.

He said Mr FitzPatrick told him he was “being a bit naive”. Mr Gillespie said he was approached by Daly who asked him, in the context of the audit, if he would be prepared to delete an account if asked to do so by Mr FitzPatrick. Mr Gillespie said no and was re-assigned.