Exposed: The face of a con man listed as the disgraced sidekick of Catriona Carey

The Sunday world can today release non-pixelated images of Wexford-based con artist Patrick (Paddy) Maher for the first time after pleading guilty to five counts of deception.

Maher (55) was due to be convicted on all five counts at Wexford Circuit Court last Tuesday.

However, sentencing was postponed until later this year after the court heard a probation report on him was not yet ready.

Details of the five counts to which Maher pleaded guilty can also be revealed by this newspaper today.

* On September 25, 2018, at the Beehive pub in Coolbeg, Wicklow, he dishonestly tricked a woman into handing over €4,400 in cash and a Toyota Avensis 09 reg in exchange for a BMW X3 with registration 141 – which was the subject of a lease and remained the property of BMW Ireland.

* On dates between November 29, 2017 and February 15, 2018, at Donohues in the Duffry in Enniscorthy, he dishonestly tricked another woman into handing over a total of €3,800 for services related to a false mortgage application with intent to cause loss to another.

* On dates between January 1, 2018 and March 15, 2018, in Parktown Mews, Enniscorthy, Maher dishonestly enticed a man to hand over cash totaling £1,200 for a mortgage application which was false with the intention to make a gain for himself.

Mortgage

* On dates between August 1 and October 26, 2018 at Shingan in Enniscorthy, he dishonestly tricked another man into handing over cash totaling €2,825 in payment for a mortgage loan application which was false with the intention of cause loss to others.

* And on dates between May 1, 2018 and December 5, 2018, in Shingan, Enniscorthy, he dishonestly by deceit induced a third man to pay cash totaling £1,700 for the application of a false mortgage with the intention of causing loss to another.

All five charges are contrary to Section 6 of the Criminal Justice (Offences of Theft and Fraud) Act 2001.

Faced with the Sunday world about her position with Carey’s company earlier this year, after serious allegations of financial misconduct were made against the businesswoman, the 55-year-old con man told us: “It’s not has nothing to do with me.”

When our reporter attempted to show the fraudster’s records proving he had taken on the role of co-secretary with Careysfort Assets Estates Limited in December 2019, the scammer said: “I haven’t been involved since December 31 last.”

We were unable to reveal Maher’s identity at the time because he had not pleaded guilty to the charges against him, meaning he could have faced a jury.

According to the Registrar of Companies, Maher served as Joint Secretary at Careysfort Assets Estates Limited from December 31, 2019.

By law, every company in Ireland is required to appoint a company secretary who must be at least 18 years old.

The Companies Act 2014 imposes a number of duties on a company secretary.

These obligations consist in particular of co-signing the annual declaration with an officer of the company and of certifying that the financial statements of the annual declaration are true copies of the originals.

There is no indication that Maher was involved in any illegality as a result of his involvement in Carey’s business.

Maher later told our reporter that he had never signed any documents relating to Carey’s company and was unaware he had been appointed to the position.

Crook Maher first caught the attention ofSunday worldin January 2020, when he was found guilty of defrauding a Wexford family of thousands of euros and a boat after promising he could help them get a house back after it was repossessed.

Wexford Circuit Court heard how Maher had offered to help recover the house after it was repossessed following a failure by the property owner to keep up with mortgage repayments.

The property had already been sold to another woman and there was no chance that the repossession would be reversed.

However, that didn’t stop Maher from demanding €2,500 from the family, saying he would get documents from the bank that issued the mortgage.

He then told the family that he would take their boat in order to sell it.

In due time, two men arrived and removed the vessel, a €9,000 Bayliner cruiser, from the family yard.

When the victims demanded the return of their money and property to Maher, all they received were false promises from the defendant that he would be in touch.

When cops later searched Maher’s home, they found a gun he didn’t have a license for, and he was convicted of that offense as well. Maher was given a suspended sentence for the offenses after the court heard testimony that he suffered from a “huge drinking problem”.

What was not revealed during the sentencing hearing was the fact that the scammer had been involved in the Irish arm of Catriona Carey’s Careysfort Asset Estates.

Carey’s business is at the center of a major Garda investigation into fraud and financial mismanagement.

In February, RTE Investigates revealed that more than €200,000 deposited by desperate homeowners into a business account controlled by Catriona Carey was allegedly spent on personal items and services.

Ms Carey, an accountant by training, is a former Irish hockey player and the sister of former Kilkenny hurling legend DJ Carey.

Around 15 people complained to Gardai after it handed over large sums of money to its company after learning that it would buy their debt from lenders at a lower rate and thus sell their house back to them with much lower mortgage payments. lower. All that was required was an initial lump sum of 10-30% of the new loan amount.

Some have handed over tens of thousands of euros and their debt is still in the hands of the original lenders and has not been redeemed by Careysfort Asset Estates.

Over a two-year period, approximately €400,000 from Careysfort Asset Estates clients were paid into the company’s account and last month it was down to €488.10, with nothing to refund to those who made deposits to Catriona Carey’s business.

Deposits

The biggest expense using funds from the company’s account was on July 21, 2020, when the money was used to purchase a BMW at a cost of €55,226. Money from the account was used to fund a lavish lifestyle, including ski trips to Switzerland, a trip to Florida, and multiple expenses at high-end boutiques and outlets.

Responding to a detailed list of questions from RTE Investigates, Ms Carey said she could not speak to any customers due to “strict confidentiality clauses”. She also said her company has funds to “cover all customer deposits”, but added: “We are not advised to refund customers at this stage.”

Last month, the Central Bank issued a public warning about UK arm Careysfort Asset Estates.

He said the company is not authorized by the Central Bank to provide financial services. It reads: ‘The Central Bank considers Careysfort Asset Estates Limited to hold itself out as a person whose business consists wholly or in part in providing credit directly to a relevant person. It does not hold any authorization from the Central Bank as a personal loan company.