Worker stole €4,000 in credit card fraud

Fourteen Bord Gáis customers who had fallen into arrears on their accounts had a total of €4,000 stolen from them via fraudulent credit card transactions by a call centre employee and yesterday he got an 18-month suspended jail term.

Patrick Grealish, of Garraí Corcaí, Lettermullen, Co Galway, who had previous convictions of a similar nature from Galway in 2011, was working in the call centre at Little Island, Co Cork, when he carried out these offences between September 2 and 28, 2015.

It was confirmed at his sentencing hearing yesterday by Detective Garda Neil Walsh that Grealish had paid compensation for all of the money stolen.

Donal O’Sullivan, defending, said the accused was working in a call centre at the time, got access to credit card details of gas customers. After he left the job he stayed in hotels around the country using the credit cards to pay for his visits. The injured parties were reimbursed by the banks.

Mr O’Sullivan said before compensation was paid it was the banks that were at a loss for the amounts.

Mr O’Sullivan said the defendant had physical and mental health difficulties.

Imposing sentence Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin said the pleas of guilty had to be acknowledged as proving deception cases was difficult and in the present case it might have required a large number of witnesses.

The judge imposed an 18-month sentence suspended in its entirety on condition that he would be of good behaviour for the next 18 months.