Prosecution gives closing argument in Northern Bank case

The Cork man charged with laundering more than £3m (€3.2m) for from the Northern Bank robbery is telling lies or else there is a conspiracy of lies by a high-ranking team of garda investigators, a court heard today.

That was the choice presented to the jury at Cork Circuit Criminal Court today by Senior Counsel Marjorie Farrelly in her closing speech on the 41st day of the trial Ted Cunningham (aged 60) of Woodbine Lodge, Farran, Co Cork.

Cunningham denies 10 charges of money-laundering arising out of the investigation of the robbery of £26.5m (€28.3m) from the Northern Bank in Belfast on December 20, 2004.

Ms Farrelly also urged the jury to follow the money when they go out in a few day’s time to deliberate on the case.

“If you follow the money backwards it won’t take you to England, it won’t take you to Bulgaria, it won’t take you to a letter coming from Kazakhstan,” Ms Farrelly SC said.

“On any proof if you follow the money from under the bed of the Douglases (Offaly jewelers), from a farm in Rathmore, from a safe in John Sheehan’s office (in Ballincollig), from the basement of Ted Cunningham’s house it will lead you all the way back through the organisation that robbed the North Bank cash centre on December 20, 2004, it will lead you back to the cash centre on that date,” Ms Farrelly SC said.

“It is a matter for you to decide where the truth lies. He is either telling you the truth or telling you lies. Either he is telling you lies or there is a conspiracy of lies by a high-level team of garda investigators,” she said.

In her closing speech, Ms Farrelly explored what she described as inconsistencies in the different accounts given by the accused at different times, even apart from the account in the Bridewell on February 18, 2005 where Cunningham claimed he was terrorised and told gardaí what they wanted him to say.

Ms Farrelly compared the account given on February 17, when Cunningham said he was telling the truth, with the account he gave from the witness box.

Defence senior counsel Ciarán O’Loughlin will give his closing speech tomorrow.