Cork businessman convicted of hiring men to rob his home

A company managing director with financial difficulties hired three Polish nationals to burgle his home and burn out his Range Rover with a view to making a major insurance claim.

Tony McCarthy, (aged 40), of Glashaboy, Bweeng, Co Cork, a well know businessman in the Mallow area, was sentenced to four years imprisonment suspended for making a false report of a crime to gardai.

Superintendent Pat McCarthy of Mallow garda station testified at Cork Circuit Criminal Court that over 1,000 garda hours were tied up in the investigation of McCarthy’s claim that his home had been burgled with the theft of €92,000 worth of jewellery, over €8,000 in electrical items and a Range Rover valued at €57,000.

Judge Patrick J. Moran said, “No doubt about it, the type of activity you were involved in was of a very serious criminal nature and one which the courts cannot deal with lightly.”

One of the officers investigating the complaint became suspicious about the fact that the Range Rover was burnt out in Whitechurch, Co Cork, within a matter of minutes of when the ‘burglary’ had occurred.

The investigation then concentrated on the man who had made the complaint. Last week he pleaded guilty to making the false report.

“We arrested four Polish nationals, three of whom carried out this. They were paid €2,500 to carry out this burglary and burn out the jeep.

“He is a businessman. Things did not go very well for him. He was involved in building and importing coal. He was the company managing director. He was separated at the time and had a conviction for assaulting his wife. His company has gone into liquidation,” Superintendent McCarthy said.

Defence senior counsel, Tim O’Leary, said, “These matters arose out of financial difficulty, that is the reality, simple as that.

“Not alone is Mr McCarthy faced with the end of a successful business but with opprobrium of his local community. He was someone of note in his local community.”

Mr O’Leary SC said that it was accepted that this ridiculous criminal enterprise had caused the gardaí a lot of difficulty by causing such a lengthy investigation to be launched.