Kenneth Shanny’s VAT fraud sentence appeal dismissed

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

The Court of Appeal dismissed Kenneth Shanny’s appeal against his prison sentences on 8 July 2016. Mr. Justice Mahon delivered the judgment.

Shanny had been sentenced on 11 November 2015 to three years’ imprisonment on each of eight counts, running concurrently from that date. The final 18 months of each sentence were suspended, conditional on his entering his own bond of 200 and keeping the peace and being of good behaviour for 18 months after release.

He pleaded guilty at Trim Circuit Criminal Court on 3 June 2015 to eight counts of a 24-count indictment concerning offences under the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 and the Finance Act 1999.

Shanny, an accountant and tax adviser, falsified VAT returns for two clients between November 2008 and May 2010 to fraudulently obtain VAT exemptions or repayments. Money recovered was divided between him and his clients.

He argued that there was an unfair disparity between his sentences and the wholly suspended terms of ten months and three years imposed on his clients. He also challenged the assessment of the offences’ gravity, the provision for rehabilitation and the proportionality of his sentences.

Mr. Justice Mahon held that the sentencing judge had identified the relevant aggravating and mitigating factors, and that failure to follow sentencing best practice strictly did not necessarily justify intervention. He considered the suspension of half the sentences generous and held that an entirely suspended sentence was inappropriate. Shanny’s professional position made his offences significantly more serious than his clients’ offences.

The court found the three-year terms within the appropriate range, citing his breach of trust with the Revenue Commissioners, his facilitation of offences by others and his previous conviction for a not entirely dissimilar offence.