Fraudster scams life savings of 'distressed and embarrassed' retired Limerick teacher

A RETIRED school teacher in County Limerick pressed on a link on the internet which was “a gateway to being deceived and defrauded of her life savings”.

The money that  the female victim thought she was investing with a well-spoken English employee of Citibank ended up in the account of a bricklaying company in Monaghan owned by a man with a cocaine habit. Her  savings, built up over years, were then transferred to bank  accounts in Turkey.

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Keith Smyth, aged 28, of Rosevale, Castleblayney, County Monaghan pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering on February 27, 2023.

Prosecuting barrister Lily Buckley, instructed by State solicitor Brendan Gill, outlined the evidence at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court with the assistance of Detective Garda Elaine O'Keeffe.

Ms Buckley said it was a “very sophisticated” scam as the victim did a lot of research and “still fell foul of the crime”. The barrister said the retired teacher wanted to invest her life savings of €24,750, which she had in an account, to get a better return. 

“She was researching Citibank, pressed on a link which was a gateway to being deceived and defrauded of her life savings,” said Ms Buckley.

The victim was sent a brochure and received a phone call from a man purporting to be a named  account manager  on the authentic Citibank website.

“The conman had assumed the identity of the account manager,” said Ms Buckley.

The victim received the phone call from the well-spoken man with an English accent on a Dublin landline number.

“The fraudster had rented a call answering service with the Dublin phone number. It was all done to induce confidence. She was to receive a 3.5% return on her investment and told it was guaranteed by the Central Bank Deposit Scheme,” said Ms Buckley.

The victim transferred her life savings to a Bank of Ireland account  which unknown to her was Mr Smyth’s business account. The retired teacher contacted gardai after her calls to the Dublin phone number went unanswered.

Gardai linked the bank account to Mr Smyth’s bricklaying business and went to interview him in the Midlands Prison where he is serving a separate sentence. The court heard Mr Smyth allowed the “fraudster”, who was not named in court, use his bank account.

Mr Smyth told gardai when money was lodged into his account, the man would tell him where to transfer it and he would get €500. He said he sent the sum of €24,750 to accounts in Turkey.

“I am ashamed about it being stolen from an old lady in  Limerick. I was absolutely stupid. I thought he was a legitimate businessman. I was heavy on drink and cocaine so I didn’t ask. I was feeding my habit of between €400 to €600 a week,” Mr Smyth told gardai.

Ms Buckley said the accused has 32 previous convictions including for public order, road traffic, assault of a police officer, drink driving, possession of drugs and an aggravated burglary.

In concluding the prosecution case, Ms Buckley said the retired teacher has been left distressed  and is embarrassed she got deceived.

Kenneth Kerins BL, who represented Mr Smyth, said his client made full and frank admissions to gardai, pleaded guilty and has shown remorse. He described it as a “desperate act”.

“He is a model prisoner. He has worked all his life and has potential to get on with his life upon release from prison. He is ashamed of it. He had a difficult upbringing,” said Mr Kerins.

Judge Colin Daly said Mr Smyth was a “money mule” and “turned a blind eye”. The judge said the accused assisted a “very sophisticated” criminal enterprise which replicated a bank website.

Judge Daly said Mr Smyth has been in gainful employment all his life and is capable of being a pro-social member of society. He was jailed for two years with the final year suspended for three years.