Brendan Mullin found guilty of stealing hundreds of thousands of euros from the Bank of Ireland – Home Page

Isabel Hayes and Eimear Dodd

Former rugby player Brendan Mullin was found guilty of stealing hundreds of thousands of euros from Bank of Ireland Private Bank when he was its chief executive a decade ago.

The jury returned guilty verdicts on 12 of the 14 charges presented to the court Tuesday after nearly seven hours of deliberation. Mullin showed no visible reaction when the verdicts were announced.

Mullin, 61, stood trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, accused of nine counts of stealing more than €570,000 from the bank between 2011 and 2013 and five counts of false accounting. He denied all the charges against him.

The jury was instructed by the trial judge to find Mullin not guilty of a new hoax in which he allegedly persuaded two bank employees to sign a payment authorization form.

The three-week trial heard allegations that Mullin, of Stillorgan Road, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, acted dishonestly in arranging sums to be paid by the private bank to McCann Fitzgerald lawyers, Beechwood accountants and Grant Thornton for the work. It was done for himself or for his company, Quantum Investment Strategies.

The prosecution also alleged that Mullin stole €500,000 from Bank of Ireland during a breakdown in communications across various arms of the banking group, with the money eventually being transferred to a company called Spice Holdings, registered in the British Virgin Islands.

The court heard Spice Holdings was a client Mr Mullin brought to the bank.

The jury returned a verdict of not guilty on two of the charges before the court regarding Beechwood Partners. These concerned an alleged theft of €6,150 from a private bank and a related charge of false accounting, resulting from work carried out by this company for Mr Mullin.

Judge Martin Nolan thanked the jury for their hard work and diligence. He decided to release Mullin on bail for now.

The matter will return to court to set a sentencing date later Tuesday.