Courts / Dublin / Report
Woman 'spotted opportunity' and dishonestly took housing finder's fees
Summary
Jane Dowling, 54, of Newlands House, Baldonnell, Dublin, pleaded guilty in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to deceiving Dublin City Council into paying her €12,000 finder's fee for sourcing rental properties under the Housing Assistance Payments scheme on 7 December 2018. At the time she worked for a rental property company while also running her own company, City Properties, which had no connection to her employer. Dowling used properties that her employer managed and claimed the finder's fee under her own company. She has since repaid the full amount. Judge Martin Nolan, noting that Dowling is the sole provider for her teenage daughter and has no prior convictions, sentenced her to one year in prison, suspended in full, and accepted that she is unlikely to appear again in court. The case was prosecuted by Aoife McNickle BL and defended by Justin McQuade BL. The Gardaí had arrested Dowling in September 2020 after her employer reported the deception.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Woman 'spotted opportunity' and dishonestly took housing finder's fees. Charges or matters: inducing Dublin City Council by deception to pay fees in relation to a number of properties in Dublin on December 7, 2018; the offence. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- December 7, 2018 Hearing Or Sentence
- September 2020 Incident
- 2017 and 2018 Other
- 2025-02-25 Publication
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: inducing Dublin City Council by deception to pay fees in relation to a number of properties in Dublin on December 7, 2018; the offence (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: He acknowledged that she is the sole provider for her teenage daughter and accepted that she is "unlikely to come before the courts again". "She has repaid the money, it would be unjust to imprison her," Judge Nolan said, before he sentenced Dowling to one year which he suspended in full.
Places mentioned
- Dublin City
- Baldonnell Road
- Dublin
- Newlands House
- Dublin
- Dublin Circuit Criminal Court
Topics
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