Co-founder of Cork cat charity avoids jail for gambling away €27k of donations

Owen Collins has repaid this money in full, but the animal welfare charity Cat Haven has been de-registered

The court heard that €19,600 of funds went into Owen Collins’s online gambling account prior to Cat Haven being registered as a charity in February 2018. Photo: Cork Courts Limited

A founder of animal welfare charity Cat Haven was sentenced for stealing €27,500 paid to the charity in donations for food and shelter for lost or unwanted cats and kittens.

32-year-old Owen Collins of Mountain Barracks, Mitchelstown, County Cork, gambled all of this money – mainly through his Betting 365 online account.

Now he has repaid this money in full at Cork Circuit Criminal Court where Judge Helen Boyle imposed a two-and-a-half-year sentence suspended on condition that he would continue under the care of his psychotherapist dealing with his gambling addiction for the next two-and-a-half years.

There were 39 charges on the indictment and most of the charges refer to different dates in 2019. Each charge refers to a sum of money ranging from €10 to €7,500, stolen from Cat Haven, Hillcrest, Camden Road, Crosshaven, County Cork.

Prosecution barrister Dermot Sheehan said that since the investigation commenced in 2019 the accused had been gathering compensation for the former charity and had accumulated €27,500.

“The period of offending appears to be from June 2017 to March 2019. The up-to-date position is that the final tranche of compensation has been paid – totalling €27,500,” Mr Sheehan BL said.

Detective Garda Maura O’Riordan outlined the background of the thefts from Cat Haven. “This was the theft of monies from a cat welfare charity by one of its founder members. It was for the rescue of cats and kittens. They went on to set up a charity.

“Donations were directed to his personal account prior to it being registered as a charity in February 2018.

“Persons began donating money for the care of cats. Concern about it was raised by a former volunteer. €19,600 of funds went into Owen Collins’s online gambling account.

“The money he received was all used to gamble on his account – Betting 365,” Det. Garda O’Riordan said.

When questioned in May 2020 by gardaí he admitted stealing the money totalling over €27,000.

“In respect of the Cat Haven charity, in January last year it was de-registered by the charities regulator,” Det. Garda O’Riordan said.

Pernicious

Judge Helen Boyle said: “Well-meaning members of the public contributed money on the understanding that it would be used for the welfare of cats and kittens but the money was used by you for gambling.

“Gambling addiction is particularly pernicious. In particular online gambling can be hidden from other persons. Sometimes by the time people become aware of it, it has reached crisis point. That is what happened in this case.

“Online gambling is particularly pernicious in that regard.” Judge Boyle noted from submissions by Ms Cahill BL that the defendant’s mother, father and sister all died in tragic circumstances.

Ms Cahill said of Owen Collins: “He made full admissions. He admitted at all times it was him who was wholly responsible. Mr Collins is 32 and resides in Mitchelstown with his partner’s family who are significantly supportive of him.

Remorseful

“He is extremely remorseful that he has dragged the trustees of the charity into this mess that he has caused with his gambling addiction. He wishes to apologise to those individuals and trustees and people who made contributions.” 

The defence barrister outlined the very challenging circumstances in the defendant’s childhood even before the sudden death of his mother which sent him into a downward spiral. “He did start playing poker and this led to betting and attending bookmakers,” she said.

Ms Cahill said the accused had a genuine love of cats and got solace in looking after lost cats and having them fostered. While he was grateful to people who made donations for the provision of food and shelter for cats he went on to use part of the money to gamble.

Judge Boyle gave the prosecution an opportunity to consult again with the charities regulator about the best way to apportion the €27,500 compensation for the benefit of cats in County Cork, noting that it could not be repaid to Cat Haven which has been removed from the register of charities.