Courts / Wicklow / Report

Man stole €70k from employer to help drug-addicted ex-girlfriend

Date
2017-11-01

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Wicklow

County
Wicklow

Summary

Jonathan Hynes, a 31‑year‑old Wicklow man, stole between €1,000 and €7,000 from his employer, Zurich Life Assurance plc, between January and December 2015. He used the stolen money to pay for prescription medication and hospital bills for his drug‑addicted ex‑girlfriend. Hynes has refunded €30,000 to the insurer and still owes €40,000, which he must repay within three years. He pleaded guilty to the thefts. The Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, hearing the case, found that Hynes's motive was a desperate act driven by emotion rather than greed. Judge Martin Nolan suspended a three‑year sentence, noting that a less noble motive would have led to a different outcome, and ordered the repayment of the remaining debt. No prior convictions were recorded for Hynes.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Man stole €70k from employer to help drug-addicted ex-girlfriend. Charges or matters: stealing amounts between €1,000 and €7,000 property of Zurich Life Assurance plc, Zurich House, Frascati Road, Blackrock on dates between January 29 and December 21, 2015. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

January 29 Other
December 21, 2015 Other
2017-11-01 Publication

Why: " Judge Martin Nolan commented that Hynes's "motivation in some sense could be seen as noble" and added: "If there was a less noble motive for the theft then the result would have been different. CNI source report

Case subjects

Jonathan Hynes

Defendant

Charges: stealing amounts between €1,000 and €7,000 property of Zurich Life Assurance plc, Zurich House, Frascati Road, Blackrock on dates between January 29 and December 21, 2015 (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: Michael Bowman SC, defending, submitted that his client's theft to help his former partner during her serious addiction was a "desperate act driven by emotion rather than greed." Judge Martin Nolan commented that Hynes's "motivation in some sense could be seen as noble" and added: "If there was a less noble motive for the theft then the result would have been different." He suspended the sentence for three years and ordered that Hynes repay the €40,000 still owed to the insurance company within that time.