A 44-year-old former cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council who stole €172,000 from a Co Meath mental health charity has been sent to prison for three years and nine months with the final 12 months suspended.
Seán McKiernan of Trinity Bungalow, Virginia Road, Bailieborough, Co Cavan, was said to have spent funds of Navan Mental Health Housing Association on South American male escorts for sexual services where illegal drugs crystal meth and GHB were used, Trim Circuit Court was told.
McKiernan was a Fine Gael councillor for Bailieborough electoral area from 2007 to 2014. He made history in 2011 when he was elected the youngest cathaoirleach of Cavan County Council. He was also a member of Cavan/Monaghan Education Training Board and served as its cathaoirleach in 2016.
The thefts were described by Judge Jonathan Dunphy as a serious breach of trust to a number of vulnerable people as an employee of a charity. The court was told the Navan Mental Health organisation was founded by the late Margot Davis assisted by her husband Jack in 2001 for the benefit of those with mental health issues in the community and to provide them with independent living.
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The court heard McKiernan, who had been secretary and treasurer of the Co Meath charity, had been diagnosed with “major depressive disorder” and had significant self-esteem and mental health issues since his teens. He had been lonely and arranged escorts to procure drugs because he enjoyed the “highs and euphoria” of taking illegal drugs.
He had pleaded guilty to 11 sample counts of theft of the money out of a total of 58 counts. The thefts occurred between March 2019 and April 2020 at unknown locations in the State. The thefts ranged in amounts from €700 to €6,000.
At the sentencing hearing,Det Garda Seán Patterson of Navan Garda station said that videos recovered from the defendant’s phone following his arrest by appointment showed him smoking a crack pipe and lying in bed with an individual instructing that person to perform a sex act.
McKiernan wassecretary and treasurer of the charity and could co-sign cheques along with one of two other trustees. In 2019 he had obtained cheques without named recipients and at one stage had taken an entire chequebook from the accountancy firm FLD chartered accountants Ltd. He persuaded trustees to sign blank cheques they believed were for charity. When an audit was arranged in 2020 he gave various excuses for delayed tax returns.
The accountancy firm then found unusually large withdrawals to named individuals not normally associated with payments from the charity. These names were of South American men and women and individuals in Ireland, again not associated in any way with the charity or its suppliers. The defendant had said these were genuine cases, that they were people with mental health issues.
On one occasion he said he would repay €50,000 and on another €235,000, but no money was repaid. Trustees of the charity made contact with the Charities Regulator and reported the matter to the gardaí in February 2022.A total of 58 cheques were involved and the Det Garda Patterson said he followed the money trail. He found cheques were lodged to 33 individuals into 32 bank accounts across 23 bank branches. These amounts ranged from €700 to €6,000. He added that all the recipients seemed to be South American males and he met a number of them and interviewed them.
These men were mainly male escorts whose profiles were on different escort sites. McKiernan was “paying for their services as escorts”, he said.
“He wanted to pay for sex and drugs by way of cheques from the charity,” the detective said.
The court was told the net result was that Navan Mental Health Housing Association charity no longer existed by name and had been taken over by Drogheda Homeless Aid.
Defence barrister Gareth Baker told the court his client had “put his head in the sand” and had confided in male escorts he had financial problems and depression. He said a forensic psychologist had reported McKiernan had major depressive disorder since adolescence and he had a certain physiological condition that impacted on sexual functioning which appeared to have contributed greatly to his mental distress.
Mr Baker said his client was “deeply ashamed that he grossly abused trust and power”.
“He knows he has fences to mend with family, friends and the community and wishes dearly to meet the residents of the charity again to say sorry,” Mr Baker said.
The judge sentenced McKiernan to three years and nine months’ imprisonment, with the final 12 months suspended. He was also ordered to come under the supervision of the Probation Service for two years following his release.
