Ex-accountant from Cork jailed for money laundering as partner failed to disclose information

A former accountant from Cork money-laundered nearly €290,000, including from a Canadian medical cannabis company, while his partner failed to disclose information to gardaí, a court has heard.

Cyril Keegan, aged 54, involved himself in a criminal scheme and acted as a “conduit” for convicted money launderer Simon Gold, helping him to defraud various injured parties, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Monday.

 His account was used to receive a sum of just over €180,000 from a Canadian medical cannabis start-up whose CEO believed this money would be used to secure $85m in funding. As soon as the money landed in Keegan's account, it was quickly dispersed, the court heard.

Further investigation found Keegan credited Gold's account with eight different payments amounting to a total sum of just under €80,000 from other injured parties, while he credited his partner Ruth Kennedy's account with a sum of €26,175.

Keegan pleaded guilty to three counts of money laundering on dates between 2017 and 2018, with the sums involved amounting to a total of €288,650, Jane McGowan, prosecuting, told the court.

Kennedy, aged 55, pleaded guilty to one count of failing to disclose information to gardaí on July 26, 2021, under Section 19 of the Criminal Justice Act 2011.

Keegan was jailed for three years and nine months while Kennedy was given a suspended two-year sentence.

Neither of the couple, with an address at Old Mill, Browns Mill, Co Cork, have any previous convictions.

Gold, aged 61, of Windy Ridge House, Cartontroy, Athlone, Co Westmeath, was jailed for seven-and-a-half years in 2019 for money laundering €1.6m and was later sentenced for dishonestly opening two bank accounts upon his release from jail.

Detective Garda Sean Sheehan of the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau said Keegan was a former accountant whose career ended after he had health issues in the wake of a car accident in the early 2000s. He told gardaí that Gold was a business associate. Emails and messages between both men were uncovered by gardaí.

'No trappings of wealth'

Kennedy ran a coffee shop in Cork before it closed in 2015, the court heard. When interviewed by gardaí about the €26,000 that had come into her account, she was unable to account for it, the court heard.

Eoghan Cole, defending, said the money was used by the couple to pay the mortgage and other bills. The couple had no trappings of wealth nor of a lavish lifestyle, the court heard. Keegan now works as a tour guide and is studying for a master's degree, defence counsel said.

Handing down sentence, Judge Martin Nolan said Keegan involved himself with Gold and allowed his bank account to be used to transfer funds.

“He must have known he was involved in this fraudulent behaviour,” the judge said.

“Mr Keegan must have known this was a case where these parties were going to be defrauded of monies.” He said he had read the victim impact statement which was handed into court and that great distress had been caused to the injured parties who lost money. He set a headline sentence of six years and reduced it to three years, nine months, taking mitigating factors into account.

In relation to Kennedy, the judge said she hadn't co-operated as she should have with the investigation, but that he thought she was unlikely to reoffend. He set a sentence of two years which he suspended in full.