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BreakingNews.ie
26-05-2025
- BreakingNews.ie
Private school bursar stole €500k to fund gambling addiction, court hears
A private school bursar who stole €500,000 to fund a gambling addiction has since sold her home and signed over her pension to pay back the institution around which her whole life revolved, a court has heard. Mary Higgins (62), with an address at Hawthorn Lawn, Castleknock, was before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on Monday, where she pleaded guilty to stealing €500,000 from Mount Sackville Secondary School in Chapelizod between January 1st, 2012, and March 23rd, 2017. Advertisement The court heard that she had spent 12 years attending the school and 24 years working there. She told gardaí that she had hoped and prayed every day for 'a big win' to pay the school back, but the court heard that the hole kept getting deeper. Det Gda Brendan O'Hora testified that Higgins had controlled all aspects of cash flow in the school, was the main signatory on its bank accounts and controlled the lodgements. When cash was received in the school, it was placed in a folder for her and she decided how it was to be allocated. He explained that, while parents received receipts, there was no cash receipts book, no copy of receipts was ever kept, and there was no oversight. However, it was another employee who prepared ledger cards for each child attending the school. This employee noticed that, from time to time, they were rewritten by Ms Higgins. She also noticed that the accounts were always late and never up-to-date. Advertisement The principal was informed and, in March 2017, it was decided an auditor would be brought in to help the defendant. Higgins told the principal that she had taken cash from the school over time and used it for her gambling addiction. She said she had taken about €500,000 and that she had a property she could sell. She was so distressed that the school was concerned for her well-being and suggested she attend her GP. She was placed on administrative leave. An accountant was engaged by the school, but such was the dearth of records, that the exact amount taken or period of time concerned could not be identified with any certainty. The Director of Public Prosecutions proceeded on the basis of the defendant's own admissions. Advertisement Det Gda O'Hora said that Higgins had cooperated fully with gardaí and the forensic accountant. She had stressed she was the only person involved in the theft, and was very anxious that nobody else would be blamed. She told her interviewers that she had spent all of the money on gambling, and was able to identify money having been paid to bookies. The detective explained that she was able to hide what she'd been doing as some fees were paid in advance. She worked a year ahead so students were not affected and all children attending the school had their fees paid. She had no previous convictions and has since repaid €470,949.62. Under cross examination from Ronan Kennedy SC, defending, the detective agreed that this was an unsophisticated offence, where she was stealing cash that she was responsible for lodging into bank accounts. He accepted that she'd had unfettered access to the cash due to a lack of oversight, meaning it wasn't difficult to carry out. Advertisement Det Gda O'Hora agreed that she was in crisis and couldn't live with herself anymore and came forward to disclose her addiction and what she had done. She had attended voluntary meetings with the principal and chairperson of the board of management, who had urged her to get medical advice for her gambling disorder. Another staff member told investigators that she had always been very professional in school. She had noticed that Higgins seemed to be betting on horses in recent years, but didn't realise it was an addiction. The court heard that she was very remorseful in her interviews with gardaí. She told them that she had spent 36 years at the school, was not married, had no children and that her job was her life. Det Gda O'Hora added that her social life, too, and therefore her whole life had revolved around the school. She told them that she would hope and pray every day that she'd have a big win and pay back the money. Advertisement 'The hole just seemed to get bigger,' remarked the detective. 'I believe she showed true remorse,' he added. 'Notwithstanding what she'd done, she was a pleasure to deal with.' The court heard that she had attended the Rutland Centre for her addiction and still attends Gamblers Anonymous, where she had served as a secretary, giving her time voluntarily. She had also engaged with counsellors for personal therapy. Higgins returned to education in the eight years since the offence came to light, studying addiction and counselling so she could use her own experience to help others. She'd received a postgraduate qualification from Trinity College, and a Master's degree in counselling psychotherapy and has been providing voluntary counselling services to others. The court heard that she had sold her home and another apartment she had, and had also signed over her pension to repay the money. 'Checks have been carried out, and any properties or moneys she had has been paid over to the school,' confirmed the detective. She now lives with her 93-year-old mother and receives €260 per week in carer's allowance to provide the 24-hour care she needs. Det Gda O'Hora said that all of the money had been used to feed gambling; bank statements showed significant amounts were paid to large bookmakers, and that she had been allowed to continue to bet. Mr Kennedy asked him if she had suffered a significant fall from grace. 'Her whole life appears to have revolved around the school and she was highly regarded within that circle,' he said. 'I think she's tackled her issues head-on and has gone above and beyond in tackling her issues, in terms of what I've seen in my career,' he added. He said that she had worked hard for the school and that, while the offence had an impact on the school, losing her also had an impact. He confirmed that the school had since changed its system. 'It's a remarkably sad and tragic case,' said Mr Kennedy, explaining that she had asked him to publicly apologise to the entire school community. He said that she was from a family of four and had been born in America. Her own father had been inflicted with alcohol and gambling problems and had suffered a fatal heart attack in her presence when she was three years old. This had led to her having emotional disturbances for which her mother had sought treatment. The family moved to Ireland when she was six. Mr Kennedy said that during her time at Mount Sackville, she had overseen maintenance and capital building, with €7 million in profits reinvested into the school. Things changed in 2012 and some responsibilities were removed from her, impacting her self-esteem. She found herself having more time on her hands and, with no hobbies, she engaged in the secretive activity of gambling. He said that studying formula and bets became all-consuming. 'She was living a double life,' he said. He noted that there was a shortfall of €29,000 in what she had repaid, but said that she was committed to paying it back if made a condition of her sentence. It would take time, however, as her only source of income is now carer's allowance. Counsel handed in several testimonials from current and former staff at the school, including a former principal and deputy principal. Letters from family members were also handed in, including from her elderly mother, who spoke of her unwavering love and support to her and her regret that she didn't see the signs of gambling. Ireland Woman (29) jailed for setting her neighbour's car... Read More Her brother, who had travelled from New York for the court case, wrote of how 'gambling has destroyed a life so well lived in kindness'. 'She recognises the gravity of what she has done,' said Mr Kennedy, asking for leniency. 'She's already lost her job in a very public fall from grace and has hit every branch on the way down.' Judge Orla Crowe asked why the matter had only now come forward, and was told that this was due to the length of time it took to complete the forensic accountant's report. She said she would give her decision on June 19th.
The Irish Sun
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Dessie Farrell hails ‘warrior' Ciaran Kilkenny's ‘unusual' reaction to cramp that shows ‘type of boyo he is' vs Galway
CIARÁN KILKENNY was Dublin's hero when supremo Dessie Farrell badly needed one against Galway. The eight-time All-Ireland winner had never lost a Leinster Championship game until Advertisement 2 Ciaran Kilkenny was superb in Dublin's win over Galway Credit: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile 2 Dessie Farrell praised his performance Credit: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile Dublin's demise was on the horizon, and they were underdogs ahead of Saturday's trip to Salthill. But Kilkenny and his team-mates had other ideas, The Castleknock man was their driver from start to finish — and refused to let a bad cramp end his fight for the cause. He scored 0-2 and was the key outlet in their 1-18 to 2-14 win as Tom Lahiff's last-gasp score blew the All-Ireland series group of death wide open. Advertisement Read More on GAA Lorcan O'Dell, Seán Bugler and Con O'Callaghan fired 0-3 each as Stephen Cluxton's flawless kickouts caused the hosts huge problems. They banished their 2024 All-Ireland quarter-final loss to Pádraic Joyce's men and the pain of Portlaoise last month in one fell swoop. And Farrell hailed Kilkenny and the rest of his heroes for delivering when they needed it most. Farrell said: 'He was a warrior and got cramp early enough in the second half. Advertisement Most read in Sport Exclusive 'Generally, when a player gets cramp, there's only one thing happening, and he's coming off in a matter of minutes. 'We'd a slip written for him, but he was able to dig it out and keep going and keep going. It's very unusual to see that, but that's the type of boyo he is, he was excellent. Inside Lee Chin's life including day job as Wexford forward even stars during RTE GAA ad breaks with Johnny B 'Con was really good in the first half and a lot of the young lads as well. It's a big step up for a lot of fellas. 'A lot of the young players did really well. Peadar Ó Cofaigh-Byrne in the middle I thought had a great game as well. We're down to the serious stuff now at this stage.' Advertisement Galway were out of sorts after surging to their fourth Connacht title in a row against Mayo a fortnight beforehand. Paul Conroy's midfield influence was curtailed by Kilkenny and Ó Cofaigh-Byrne as Theo Clancy was detailed to hunt him down if he got a sniff at the posts. Shane Walsh made his first appearance since their NFL loss to the Dubs in March. But he lost his battle with Davy Byrne and only mustered one two-pointer in the opening half. Advertisement Liam Silke was caught in possession for Cormac Costello's first-half goal in the scorching sun as Bugler thrived at centre-back after missing the Meath loss with an ankle problem. But Joyce's men still took the game to the wire thanks to Matthew Thompson and Rob Finnerty's second-half goals. 'KICK IN THE A**E' The Salthill duo sizzled in their own back yard as Finnerty fired 1-6 and Thompson's strike sparked Galway's revival. But Lahiff delivered the killer blow right after the hooter. Advertisement And Farrell was pleased with Dublin's response ahead of their crunch round 2 showdown with Armagh at Croke Park on June 1. Farrell said: 'The goals were both a kick in the a**e, if you like. 'But again, the lads showed great resilience and kept playing away. It would have been easy to throw in the towel there with momentum had gone against us. 'We started to wilt maybe three quarters of the way through the second half, with fellas going down and a lot of different stuff happening. Advertisement 'But we just kept plugging away and plugging away and just saw it out at the end.' Deflated Tribes boss Joyce was fuming when ref David Gough penalised Seán Kelly for charging when he collided with Clancy. His captain was heading for goal when Clancy hit the deck and Galway were two points down. Finnerty's goal out of nothing soon followed when the brilliant Cillian McDaid's high ball was kept in play by John Maher, and Matthew Tierney flicked it across goal. Advertisement But Dublin did not falter — and Joyce insists they will have a huge say in the race for Sam Maguire come July. He said: 'Look, people talk about Dublin being beat and out of it, they've seven or eight of the best footballers in the country we've ever seen, so we knew that. 'We knew internally ourselves it was going to be a huge battle, we said it to the lads before the game. 'We were expecting a huge battle from a serious team, a well coached team, so we knew that. 'It came down to the kick of the ball. Advertisement 'We said it before and it was going to come down to that and it did.' Up next, GALWAY travel to Derry on Sunday, June 1 at 2pm. DUBLIN host Armagh at Croke Park at 4pm on the same day. SCORERS — Dublin: C Costello 1-3, 2f, S Bugler 0-3, L O'Dell 0-3, C O'Callaghan 0-3, K McGinnis 0-2, C Kilkenny 0-2, B O'Leary 0-1, T Lahiff 0-1. Galway : R Finnerty 1-6, 1tp, 1f, M Thompson 1-1, S Walsh 0-2tp, M Tierney 0-2, J McGrath 0-1, J Maher 0-1, C McDaid 0-1, Advertisement
Irish Times
14-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Times
The kindness of medical staff
Sir, – My 98-year-old mother was recently treated for respiratory failure in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda. Over the space of five weeks, she received outstanding treatment and care from each member of staff in the Newgrange ward. From the consultants to the catering staff, she was treated with kindness and compassion, while our family was kept fully informed of each step of her treatment. When the time came for the palliative care team to be involved, they gently guided us through the process of her impending death, allowing her to do so with grace and dignity. With the HSE constantly in the spotlight for failures in the system, I wanted to highlight that there are still so many things that work well when they have the necessary resources. – Yours, etc, READ MORE MARY HAND, Castleknock, Dublin 15.
