Patrick Moran jailed for €283k theft after appeal

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

Patrick Moran was sentenced to three years in prison, with the final 10 months suspended for two years, by Mr. Justice Mahon in the Court of Appeal on 8 July 2016. The suspension was conditional on Moran entering into a bond in the usual terms. His original concurrent three-year prison sentences were imposed at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on 31 July 2015.

Moran pleaded guilty on 9 June 2015 to four counts of theft, two counts of falsifying a document with intent, one count of making a false instrument with intent, one count of using a false instrument with intent and one count of obtaining by deception. Other theft offences were taken into consideration. The case concerned the diversion of €283,740 from Deutsche Bank through falsified records and an increased company credit-card limit.

Moran argued that insufficient weight had been given to mitigation, including his psychiatric history and efforts to establish a new business. The Court of Appeal allowed his appeal, finding that suspending part of the sentences did not appear to have been considered. It held that the three-year terms were appropriate, but that a portion should have been suspended in light of his guilty pleas, lack of previous convictions and low risk of reoffending, to encourage rehabilitation.