Courts / Kildare / Report

'Did she think the money was coming from a fairy godmother?': State appeals suspended sentence given to Cartel lieutenant's wife

Date
2022-02-08
Stage
Appeal
Primary locality
Celbridge
County
Kildare

Summary

Deirdre Brady, aged 54, was given a three‑year wholly suspended sentence after pleading guilty to two offences under Section 7 of the Criminal Justice Act for laundering almost €800,000 in illegal cash through bank accounts she controlled. The money, derived from criminal activity, was deposited in four accounts: a joint PTSB account with her husband containing €94,000; an Ulster Bank account with €347,000; an AIB account with €205,000; and a Bank of Ireland account with €85,000. Additional transfers included €34,000 to a resort for a wedding and €141,000 to Thomas Kavanagh, an Irish citizen in Spain. Brady's husband, Declan Brady, a senior Kinahan Cartel lieutenant, was jailed for seven years and three months for his role in the enterprise. The State appealed the sentence as unduly lenient, but the Court of Appeal upheld the suspended sentence, noting no evidence of coercive control by her husband.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 'Did she think the money was coming from a fairy godmother?': State appeals suspended sentence given to Cartel lieutenant's wife. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

Why: Mr Justice Tony Hunt said the women did not receive custodial terms because they did not participate in the underlying criminality that was the source of the cash. CNI source report

Case subjects

Deirdre Brady

Appellant

Outcome: Deirdre Brady (54) was given a three-year wholly suspended sentence after pleading guilty to two offences contrary to Section 7 of Criminal Justice Act at the Special Criminal Court. At a sentence hearing in July 2021, Brady's husband Declan – a senior Kinahan Cartel lieutenant known as Mr Nobody – was jailed for seven years and three months for his role in the illegal enterprise, while Declan Brady's mistress Erika Lukacs was given a three-year suspended sentence for laundering €196,864 of Kinahan cash.

Places mentioned

Court Venue
  • Court of Appeal
  • Special Criminal Court
Secondary Mention

Topics

Stage Appeal

Related court reports

Read the original CNI report

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