Michael Connor, who represented Ireland internationally in pool, has admitted to “playing a small part’’ in the elaborate scheme to defraud the Trinity College Hardship Fund, receiving a subsequent sentence of one year in prison.
Judge Martin Nolan said that Trinity College was the “victim of considerable fraud.” He commented that the conspirators behind the scheme “spotted a weakness in the system”.
The Trinity College Student Hardship Fund gives financial support to students who are experiencing financial distress during their studies. Trinity Development & Alumni launched this initiative to ease the hardships of the students affected by the Pandemic.
The Garda investigation found 295 separate transactions to people outside Trinity’s student cohort, adding up to €534,500 misappropriated funds.
Between October 2020 and January 2021, Connor received four payments for a total of €9,950 in his account, after sharing his name and banking information with a third party. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Connor convinced other people to share their details, but never applied to the hardship fund.
Connor confessed to gardaí that the man who asked him for his bank account details promised him part of the money deposited into his account. He received €1,650 for his involvement in the fraud.
Michael Connor is a security guard and has two children. He is the only caretaker for his 82-year-old mother. Connor admitted to going through financial difficulties when he was introduced to the scheme.
He has 22 previous convictions, and most of them are road traffic offences. The defence counsel argued on behalf of his history of health issues and addiction, which he is working on through counselling. He requested that the court take into account a non-custodial sentence to allow Connor to take care of his mother.
Judge Martin Nolan said that Connor was a mature man at the time of the events. By receiving four payments and recruiting others for the scheme, he was a “conduit for certain monies to go to other parties”, which aggravated his circumstances. The court rejected the request for a non-custodial sentence.
Connor pleaded guilty to four counts of possession of proceeds of criminal conduct. He received a one year jail sentence.
Prosecution counsel, Carol Doherty BL, informed Judge Martin Nolan that no other investigations in respect of other participants to the scheme have been concluded.
