Serial con woman jailed after grooming ex-partner in complex fraud case
The Wicklow PeopleA Dublin con woman with 30 previous convictions has been sentenced to 18 months in prison after admitting deception and forgery offences in relation to her ex-partner.
Laura Pennick (39), with an address at Lanesborough Square, Dublin 11, appeared at a sitting of Wicklow Circuit Criminal Court for sentencing.
The defendant entered a plea of guilty to one count of deception and one count of forgery.
Counsel for the prosecution, James Kelly BL, outlined the facts of one count of the indictment. The court heard that the accused began dating her former partner between 2016 and 2018.
Ms Pennick’s ex-partner, who is a farmer, was in the process of applying for the Single Person Child Carer Credit (SPCCC), a tax credit available to single parents or primary carers of children following a separation.
He had begun the application after separating from his partner. The victim had two small children.
The accused offered him help before he later decided he no longer wished to proceed with the process to obtain the credit, the court heard.
Garda Michael Cloak, of Bray Garda Station, testified that the accused contacted the tax refund company to complete the application using an email address she created which resembled the victim’s real email.
Ms Pennick further changed the bank details the company had on file to her own personal bank account.
The court heard that the victim had been subjected to a protection order from his former partner, which he was “brought before the courts for”.
Ms Pennick created a fictitious story that the victim had to pay bail money totalling between €4,000 and €6,000.
However, the complainant only became aware it was fictitious when the case was over and he did not receive his bail money back.
The defendant created two further fake email addresses where she pretended to be a woman named ‘Sharon Lynch’ and liaised with the complainant so the money could be refunded to him.
Mr Kelly noted the money was never returned.
The court heard that the couple met on a dating site in 2016 and had moved in together soon after.
Gda Cloak informed the court that the fraud came to the attention of gardaí in 2019, with Ms Pennick being arrested in 2020. She has since paid back €2,800.
A plea of guilty was entered in November 2021, but there was a delay in proceedings due to Ms Pennick reporting through her solicitor, Joe Maguire, that she had “severe health issues”.
The court heard that Ms Pennick has 30 previous convictions, including several theft offences and dishonesty offences, including theft from a former employer. In 2010, she defrauded an elderly woman and was ordered to repay the money.
Ms Pennick admitted stealing €41,935 from a Finglas mother between 2010 and 2012 while acting as her unofficial carer. The woman’s two sons had previously been shot dead in separate incidents.
Evidence was given that the funds were spent on personal expenses and lifestyle purchases. The offending came to light after discrepancies were discovered in the woman’s bank accounts. When interviewed, Ms Pennick accepted responsibility for the thefts.
At that time, the sentencing judge described the matter as a serious breach of trust involving a vulnerable injured party.
She received a three-year suspended sentence on condition that she repay the money in full.
Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard in 2016 that €20,500 had been repaid and that she was continuing to lodge €100 per week towards reimbursing the victim.
Counsel for the prosecution remarked that it showed a “similar type of offending”.
The court was told that she has since entered a guilty plea to seven counts of deception and two charges of forgery totalling €65,000 between November 2020 and December 2021.
Gda Cloak said he had spoken to the investigating garda in Cork, who described it as a similar modus operandi to the Wicklow matters, involving fake loans for personal gain
Mr Kelly read the victim impact statement of the complainant to the court.
The court heard that the injured party suffered financial losses of approximately €11,000 and experienced significant stress as a result of the offending. The complainant said the impact had been both physical and emotional, developing hypertension and seizures during the period in question.
It was outlined that the accused had encouraged the complainant to take out multiple loans, leaving him in serious financial difficulty.
The court heard he did not have money to pay for his father’s headstone and later sought assistance from the Simon Community due to his circumstances.
The statement said his life had “completely changed” and that he had, at one point, experienced suicidal thoughts. The court heard these events occurred around a year and a half ago, but he has since begun work at a golf club.
Counsel for the defence, Edmund Sweetman BL, stated that his client provided gardaí with full cooperation and that the admissions she made were “to the benefit of the case”.
The court heard Ms Pennick, who was suffering from cancer at the time, has two children aged 17 and 15, both of whom have complex needs including autism and epilepsy.
“She comes from a good family,” said Mr Sweetman.
Letters from her GP, her employer OCS and her mother, explaining her family background, were handed into court, including an updated probation report.
Judge Patrick Quinn remarked that “deception is the basis of the case”, referring to issues surrounding the probation reports.
“Ms Pennick takes people into her confidence and turns it into money, the defence can’t deny that,” stated Mr Sweetman.
The court was told the defendant has since begun psychological treatment in 2024.
During his judgment, Judge Quinn described the victim impact statement as “harrowing reading” and noted that Ms Pennick’s fraud totalled over €100,000.
When sentencing, he took into consideration her cooperation with gardaí and her children’s ongoing complex needs before handing down a sentence of 18 months imprisonment
The final six months of the sentence was suspended and a stay was granted for two weeks to allow her to organise her affairs before entering custody.
She is due to hand herself in at Bray Garda Station on March 12 before 11am