Trial against former Anglo executives to resume in the morning
Conor Gallagher
Senior Counsel for Sean FitzPatrick has finished for the day and will resume his speech in the morning to the jury in the the case against three former executives at Anglo Irish Bank.
Mr Michael O’Higgins has started his closing speech.
He told the jurors the Financial Regulator was fully aware of the deal but acknowledges that it doesn’t offer a defence. However he went on to compare the situation to breaking a red light, while rushing your pregnant wife to hospital.
He said even if a garda stops you and gives you an escort, it is still breaking a red light. Even if it’s a presidential convoy, it is still breaking a red light.
“All the officialdom in the world doesn’t make that light green,” he said. “However if such a case was to be prosecuted you might think it’s absurd.”
Mr O’Higgins said the prosecution can’t say with any conviction what happened when in the period after July 9th.
“Yet in those circumstances the prosecution are still inviting you to visit criminal liability on (Mr FitzPatrick).”
Counsel asked the jury to “forensically consider” Mr FitzPatrick’s role in the transaction.
“There’s a sea of detail in this case but there’s a very small rock pool in it that relates to Mr FitzPatrick.”
He detailed the various plans to deal with Mr Quinn’s control of Anglo shares through contracts for difference (CFDs).
Counsel said Mr FitzPatrick was at board meetings where the Quinn issue was discussed but the next point of contact was the phone call from Mr Drumm on the ninth of July right before the Maple Ten deal went through.
The senior counsel pointed out that his client was a non-executive director, which he said do not normally play a part in the day-to-day running of a company.
Counsel addressed the fact that Mr FitzPatrick was arrested before being interviewed unlike his co-accused Pat Whelan.
He said there were seven non-executive directors on the Anglo board and his client was the only one who was arrested.
“You might have seen it on the television… seven in the morning.”
Mr Higgins said five of the other non-executive directors were never even interviewed by gardaí and gave their statements through a corporate law firm.
Counsel said that during garda interview Mr FitzPatrick told investigators that if he was seen to be interfering in the affairs of the company as chairman “there’d be murder.”
Mr FitzPatrick invited gardaí to “find just one person” who would contradict what he’s saying about his involvement in the company.
“That was in March 2010,” counsel said. “We’re now in April 2014 and not one person has been produced.”
Earlier today (Thursday) Brendan Grehan SC concluded his closing speech in defence of Pat Whelan, former Director of Lending at Anglo Irish Bank.
He focused on a meeting on July 8, 2008, which preceded the controversial loans, between Anglo's former Chief Executive David Drum and Con Horan, the prudential director of the Financial Regulator's office.
Mr Grehan noted that when describing that meeting, Mr Horan was “not quite willing” to categorically state that the reference to “high net worth individuals” as potential investors had come from Mr Drumm.
“There were only two people in the room. It can only have come from one other source, and that was the Financial Regulator,” said Mr Grehan.
“There you have the Financial Regulator, pushing for the transaction, pressurising the bank for the transaction, suggesting the very transaction and how it might be achieved,” said counsel.
Mr Grehan said he had “no doubt” that Mr Horan was acting with the “most noble purpose in the world”.
“It was done in order not just to save Quinn Insurance, not just to save Anglo Irish Bank, not just the whole Quinn Group that might come crashing down....but to stop the entire banking system falling down,” he said.
Mr Grehan also told the jury that they had the power to return a verdict, which conflicts with the opinion of the trial judge.
“You decide, the judge presides. You are the touchstone of our criminal justice system,” he said.
Yesterday, the jury in the trial were ordered to find two of the bust bank’s former chiefs, Sean FitzPatrick and Pat Whelan, not guilty on some charges relating to loans to the Quinn family.
Judge Martin Nolan told the jury: “For good reason I have directed not guilty verdicts. It will all be made apparent to you in due course.”
Sean FitzPatrick still faces ten charges of illegally loaning money to the Maple Ten group of investors to buy shares in the bank.
This was part of a plan to unwind Seán Quinn’s 29.4% control of Anglo, which officials believed was driving down the share price.
Mr Whelan and former Anglo Director of Finance William McAteer also still face these charges, as well as six charges relating to the loaning of money to the Quinn family.
The trial, which centres on allegedly fraudulent loans to the Quinn family, and others, so they could buy shares in the bank in order to boost the share price - is in its tenth week and all three have denied the charges.