Courts / Dublin / Report

Homeless man claimed he 'found' €13k in bank account

Summary

Rinaldo Sciolla, 36, pleaded guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to possession of the proceeds of criminal conduct after a company in Cork mistakenly paid €13,166 to his Bank of Ireland account. He claimed he had no idea how the money arrived, saying he was expecting a €10 refund and saw the balance when checking. He withdrew €4,000 for accommodation, food and petrol, and later withdrew €2,000 and transferred €7,000 to a UK account, which he denied knowledge of. The court noted the money was not recovered and the company had to repay the supplier. Judge Melanie Greally set a headline sentence of two and a half years, gave credit for his plea and circumstances, and imposed an 18‑month sentence suspended in full.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Homeless man claimed he 'found' €13k in bank account. Charges or matters: possession of the proceeds of criminal conduct to wit cash from Bank of Ireland, Tallaght at a place unknown within the State on a date between January 16 to 23rd, 2020. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• January 16 Incident
• 2021-10-11 Publication

Why: She said this type of offending has to be regarded seriously because the provision of bank accounts to receive criminal proceeds is a very valuable service for persons involved in criminal offending. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Sentence

Related court reports

• Pair jailed for preying on innocent shooting victim in 'vicious extortion racket'
• 'Fun loving' drug dealer jailed over possession of €90k in crime cash
• 'I'm doing my job as a mum': court hears exchange between mother and accused son
• Separated husband spared conviction despite alleged threat to throw former wife out window
• Serial criminal set car ablaze after release from Melanie McCarthy-McNamara manslaughter sentence
• Drug dealer further sentenced for 'crudely' laundering own crime cash

Read the original CNI report