Michael O’Brien jailed for deception of vulnerable woman

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

Michael O’Brien was jailed for three years for deception at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. The proceedings were reported on 24 March 2017.

He pleaded guilty to four sample charges of deception on dates between October and November 2015. Prosecuting counsel Derek Cooney said the pleas were accepted as representative of ten counts.

The woman handed over €90,000 and was left with €93 in her bank account. Defence counsel Keith Spencer said the Director of Public Prosecutions had accepted O’Brien’s pleas on the basis that his culpability was limited to €20,000. O’Brien told gardaí he was working for someone else, but did not name him.

Judge Melanie Greally noted that O’Brien had brought €20,000 to court, but said the balance of the exceptionally vulnerable woman’s life savings had been irretrievably lost. Spencer said O’Brien’s wife had sold her car and his family had given him money to raise the €20,000 for the victim.

Judge Greally imposed the three-year custodial term without suspending any part, describing the deception as very aggravated and its consequences for the victim as very significant.