RTE Investigates have some great programmes. Tonights looks great!
Thanks for that...I thought they financed first day mortgages for homeowners
Interesting the overlap with the 'Freeman' con artists like Charlie Allen. It just demonstrates how many grifters came to the fore (and some remain there - Ben Gilroy et al) in the chaos that followed the property crash.
They did, I believe do Taylored , very specific mortgages, mainly commercial but recently stopped underwriting new business and just manage existing portfoliothey purchased at substantial discounts. In essence they are a Vulture fund.
No, Start were involved in the whole 'equity release' fad that took place during the boom, where homeowners took out second mortgages on their homes. They were just a lot quicker to start chasing repossessions when the loans were defaulted on.
Anyway there is zero evidence they had anything to do with Catriona Carey.
Yes as I mentioned they did originally, Taylored loans, I thought it was just commercial but your correct I'd forgot about the equity release frenzy. My primary point, more recently they stopped doing new mortgage business , both commercial and consumer and only manage current portfolio, primarily made up of distressed mortgages they purchased from various institutions.
They were a sub prime mortgage lender for a while, lending to people that the other banks didn't fancy. Hence they ended up with a higher proportion of defaulting loans. They were one of the first out of the blocks with repossession proceedings while the main banks were hesitant for political reasons. It was one of their cases, Start v Gunn, that uncovered a legal issue that put a lot of repossession cases on hold for years.
Just watched on Player after reading here. I'm gobsmacked..how is she still walking the streets? And she is so calm. The really sad part is theres no money left for anyone to get. I hope they throw the book at her for everything they possibly can. It's not her first offence so she should face the full extent of the law..
And on a lighter note...
Lol, she'd make a Nigerian Prince blush 🤣
These con artists are gas the way they still maintain the lifestyle regardless of how many they swindled. So she still has the gym ,golf and hockey club membership. What other perks does she enjoy?
Hockey stick down across both of her knees is the only job!
I'm delighted that the neighbour who bought the old couple's house is allowing them to live in it.
Have been doing some reading on her. Swindled her brothers business, owed 70,000 to revenue, stole 7,000 from previous employer for which she appeared in court but was as calm as could be when confronted! One dangerous lady..
All very true, which makes what happened all the more extraordinary, she's been at this type of shenanigans since 2010 , I'm just amazed not a single one of the people featured didn't do a quick Google search on her.
Some fascinating digging done in this thread. Kudos to all.
If the son bought the house and shop from parents...then said parents must have a large wad of cash in bank?
Where did this money go?
It's actually amazing with a little effort, name, business name what information is out there but yes, some posters have come across some extraordinary details , Miss Marple would be envious 😁
This was filed last year. I knew nothing about anything till the programme last night. I’m quite proud of my investigative skills 😂
Good question! Didn't think of that..
You'd wonder why didn't his parents buy back their house again when it was advertised at the now lower buying price even for their own peace of mind than they had supposedly sold to their son for a higher figure and had the money
That house was in the family for generations, over 100 years they said. You would have thought there'd be no mortgage attached to it. and yes the Son took out a big loan to buy the shop and house from the parents, leaving them with a nest egg to "ride off into the sun"
Something doesn't add up with the Louth family.
The Cork woman, your heart would go out to, you could see she was hurting inside.
She's based in Kilkenny, her business address is in the UK and she had a German bank account and these people still did business with her?? I mean HELLO! are these people dim-witted or what - even my granny would know there's something up.😐️
To be honest I didn’t buy that story at all. I have no doubt they were swindled but I do doubt a “neighbour” just bought the property, but who knows….
This actually makes me feel a bit sick.
What has gone on here? why is the director of a children’s cancer charity in cahoots with this sick fraudster who’s robbing people of millions of euro.
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/08549681/officers
I really hope this is all investigated properly. Great work for finding these connections.
I’ve a feeling this story is going to unravel over the years and we won’t be forgetting this documentary as it will be famously quoted for blowing wide open a massive fraudulent network.
Her business address was actually in Merrion Square Dublin wasn't it. It's only when they are chasing her that the company being registered in the UK becomes part of the information. A bank being in Germany might not necessarily be a huge red flag, some people might see it as a good thing that a country with a good reputation for non-corruption is part of the process. Cayman Islands, Bulgaria or Nigeria would be far more of a warning than Germany imo.
But ultimately yeah, it's all transparent enough that they could/should have seen through it, even with a simple google search as people said. Presumably these people who fell for it are only a small proportion of those who were actively targeted, usually the way the maths of these things work. You only need a small hit rate if you are getting €20K a mark.
People fall for these things because they really want them to be true unfortunately.
Really need the barrister (who recommended the marks to Carey) to be officially outed as well. She's been working for years for some of the various groups and freeman chancers grifting for money. She's a crucial cog in it all, but I guess RTE didn't enough to officially accuse her of any wrong-doing.
Yep I thought this too. They certainly didn't retire to the sun - so where did the money go.
It very well could still be sitting in a bank account. I don't think the old couple were involved but I feel questions need to be asked re the son - his story did not add up.
and lets not forget she also got a 'suspended' sentence last year for trying to defraud a hairdressers...wonder how she wiggled her way out of that??? did her barrister friend pull strings??
and that's why she targeted them, timid and more importantly desperate (and a tad dim) a scammer's dream
No surprise to me what any 'charity' director would do.
I have a small plot on the moon going cheap due to covid induced slow down in market. PM if interested
Is that plot South facing?
Well it was a suspended sentence but she would have been convicted. I wonder how many more pies she has her finger in? That hairdresser scam was going on at the same time as this. Surely AGS are actively investigation this especially if a pile of complaints have been made. AGS have the power to freeze accounts etc so you'd hope this will be done. Seems like a straight forward case for them and with the amount of evidence she will plead guilty no doubt with the hope of getting a reduced sentence.
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