Fermanagh GAA coach claims he was ‘forced to commit fraud’ after loyalist death threats

A well-known Co Fermanagh GAA coach has claimed he was forced to commit Vat fraud worth thousands of pounds, because his family had been given a death threat by loyalist paramilitaries.

Gerry Moane, from Brookeboro, who was in the running to manage the Fermanagh GAA team in 2013, was jailed last year for conning the Revenue and Customs in a Vat fraud costing them £766,000.

The father of six has claimed he faced years of severe pressure from loyalist racketeers demanding “protection money” that began around 10 years ago on a construction site in a loyalist community in the border area around Newry and south Armagh.