Cork man who befriended 82-year-old bachelor farmer spent €20k of his savings 

An 82-year-old bachelor farmer was befriended by a younger man who spent €20,000 of the old man’s savings. The judge described it as deplorable at the sentencing hearing.

When the farmer gave 60-year-old James O’Driscoll a cheque for €2,400, he accidentally added a zero and the defendant lodged it all to his account and spent it.

The victim did not realise something was wrong until his own cheques began to bounce and he found out that there was nothing left in his account.

Judge Sinead Behan imposed a three-year sentence, but suspended it on the basis that the accused, who has paid €2,000 in compensation already, would gather a further €6,000 at a rate of €50 per week until that is paid in full. 

That is to consist of €2,000 more to the elderly man and €4,000 to the bank, who reimbursed the farmer for the €21,600.

Abused 

Judge Behan said: “It is a very serious case. This man abused a position of trust of an 82-year-old bachelor farmer, who possibly lacked support otherwise.”

Garda Jonathan McCarthy said the man did odd jobs for the victim, for which he was paid. 

In this case, the defendant asked him for €2,400 to help him with his son’s Confirmation and the farmer agreed, writing out a cheque for that amount, which O’Driscoll lodged into his Permanent TSB account.

However, while the farmer had filled out the written part of the cheque correctly, stating that the amount was €2,400, he had not filled out the numerical figure correctly and rather than write €2,400 had written €24,000.

Some €24,000 was lodged into O’Driscoll’s account and, within a month, O’Driscoll had withdrawn some €21,600: Firstly, €10,000 in a bank withdrawal; then, €5,000 in another bank withdrawal; and the remainder withdrawn via an ATM, Garda McCarthy testified.

Questioned 

When questioned, Mr O’Driscoll admitted that the money had been in his account, but he claimed that he did not know where the money came from.

Garda McCarthy said: “He kept stating that he did not know where the money came from. He said, ‘It was in my account. I don’t know where it came from, but, once it was there, the temptation was to spend it. if I had my time over again, I wouldn’t have spent it.’”

Permanent TSB reimbursed the elderly farmer for the €21,600, but the bank was at a loss for this amount, as O’Driscoll had not repaid any of the money to them.

James O’Driscoll, aged 60, of Upper High St, Drimoleague, Co Cork, was sentenced for defrauding the 82-year-old of the money between March 14 and April 19, 2022, contrary to Section 4 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2021.

Garda McCarthy told the court that O’Driscoll had 68 previous convictions, including one for manslaughter, and for assault, public order, possession of drugs for sale or supply, and road-traffic matters and theft, with his most recent conviction being one for simple assault in 2015.

Breach of trust 

Defence barrister Mahon Corkery said: “This was a fairly egregious breach of trust and that is acknowledged by my client.” 

He said that the guilty plea was of some significance in the case, as it spared the elderly farmer having to come to court and that O’Driscoll had expressed remorse.

Mr Corkery said the accused had left school at the age of 11, as he was left at the back of the class, and largely ignored, resulting in limited employment opportunities. He began abusing alcohol when he was just 13 and got involved in criminality.