Courts / Wicklow / Report

Michael Lynn gets 5.5 years for stealing over €18m from banks

Date
2024-02-19
Stage
Sentence
Primary locality
Redcross
County
Wicklow

Summary

Former solicitor Michael Lynn, aged 55, was found guilty of stealing €18,144,385 from six banks during the Celtic Tiger era. He was convicted on ten counts of theft in a Dublin Circuit Criminal Court trial; the jury could not agree on the remaining eleven counts. Judge Martin Nolan sentenced Lynn to five and a half years' imprisonment, crediting him for seven and a half years spent in Brazilian prison. The headline sentence was 13 years, but the final imposed term was five and a half years, with the credit for time served. Lynn was extradited from Brazil in 2018 after spending four and a half years in a harsh prison. He and his wife Brid Murphy were present at sentencing, showing no visible reaction. The court set a hearing for asset confiscation on 16 April. Michael Lynn pleaded not guilty.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Michael Lynn gets 5.5 years for stealing over €18m from banks. Charges or matters: stealing just over €18 million from six financial institutions during the Celtic Tiger era, has been jailed for five and a half years; 21 counts of theft in Dublin between October 23, 2006 and April 20, 2007, when he was working as a solicitor and property developer; the 10 counts just before Christmas; stealing from were National Irish Bank, Irish Life and Permanent, Ulster Bank, ACC Bank, Bank of Scotland Ireland and Irish Nationwide Building Society. Procedural stage: sentence. Findings: Found guilty

When:

Why: He outlined how Lynn took out multiple bank loans for the same properties, including three loans to fund his multi-million home, Glenlion, in the space of 15 days. CNI source report

Case subjects

Michael Lynn

Convicted Person

Charges: stealing just over €18 million from six financial institutions during the Celtic Tiger era, has been jailed for five and a half years; 21 counts of theft in Dublin between October 23, 2006 and April 20, 2007, when he was working as a solicitor and property developer; the 10 counts just before Christmas; stealing from were National Irish Bank, Irish Life and Permanent, Ulster Bank, ACC Bank, Bank of Scotland Ireland and Irish Nationwide Building Society (Proven)

Plea: Not guilty

Finding: Found guilty

Outcome: Found guilty; Photo: Collins) Former solicitor Michael Lynn, who was found guilty of stealing just over €18 million from six financial institutions during the Celtic Tiger era, has been jailed for five and a half years. Sentencing Lynn today, Judge Martin Nolan set a headline sentence of 13 years but gave Lynn seven-and-a-half years credit for the time he spent in prison in Brazil.

Places mentioned

Court Venue
  • Dublin
  • Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Secondary Mention
Facility
  • Brazilian prison

Topics

Stage Sentence Theft

Related court reports

Read the original CNI report

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