Gran locked up with dangerous prisoners after claiming dead relative's pension for 28 years

A grandma has been incarcerated alongside immoderate of Ireland's astir unsafe pistillate prisoners aft being jailed for a massive pension scam.

Margaret Bergin is expected to service her two-year sentence, handed down yesterday for the €271,000 (£228,000) scam, successful Dublin's Dochas women's situation - location to murderers and superior criminals. The 73-year-old was sentenced by Judge Keenan Johnson astatine Portlaoise Circuit Criminal Court aft admitting to falsely claiming her deceased father-in-law's pension for implicit 28 years.

She was initially fixed a five-and-a-half-year sentence, but the last 3 and a fractional years were suspended, leaving her with a two-year term. However, with modular remission, she volition lone service 18 months. Sources suggest she could person enhanced remission, which would trim her condemnation to 16 months, making her eligible for merchandise by March 2026.

Meanwhile, she volition beryllium sharing Dochas with astir 150 different women, including convicted killers. Among her chap inmates are Regina Keogh, 47, serving a beingness condemnation for the Kinahan cartel execution of Gareth Hutch successful May 2016, and Paula Farrell, 51, besides serving beingness for the weapon execution of Wayne McQuillan astatine her location successful Rathmullen Park, Drogheda, Co Louth connected New Year's Day 2014.

Sabrina Cummins, 44, of Ringsend Park, Dublin 4, who is serving a beingness condemnation for the execution of Thomas Horan astatine his location successful the aforesaid country of the superior successful January 2014, besides resides successful Dochas, reports the Irish Mirror.

Mrs Bergin is acceptable to service her situation condemnation successful 1 of 8 units, known arsenic houses, wrong the Dochas complex, sharing her abstraction with up to 7 different inmates. She'll person an en-suite country and a cardinal to it, allowing her immoderate state to determination astir wrong a designated country during the day.

However, the houses volition beryllium locked down astatine 7.30pm. Each location besides boasts its ain sitting country implicit with a TV and books.

Mrs Bergin, who resides astatine Fairfield House successful Mountrath successful Co Laois, was sentenced contiguous astatine Portlaoise tribunal aft admitting guilt to 15 charges related to a 28-year scam. The grandma confessed to 10 counts of theft and 5 of larceny linked to her fraudulent claims of the State pension belonging to her in-law John Bergin, who passed distant successful 1993 aged 82.

From December 1993 to February 2022, Mrs Bergin managed to pouch €271,046.28 earlier her crimes were yet exposed. Detective Garda Peter Crosbie antecedently told the tribunal that an probe into the fraud was initiated aft an amateur gerontologist reached retired to Áras an Uachtaráin successful March 2022 to question records suggesting a 110 twelvemonth aged antheral resided successful Mountrath.

The researcher, dubious of the individual's details, thought the claimant's commencement day of July 2, 1911 would marque him the oldest antheral successful Ireland. Officials from Áras an Uachtaráin past contacted the Department of Social Protection (DSP), whose officials discovered the fraud aft visiting Bergin's location successful Mountrath.

Det Garda Crosbie revealed successful tribunal that galore attempts by DSP officials to cheque connected a centenarian were thwarted by the accused with assorted excuses, specified arsenic an unwell father-in-law. It emerged that nary grounds of Mr Bergin's decease could beryllium found, and erstwhile questioned, Mrs Bergin insisted nary territory caregiver visited due to the fact that she, being a caregiver herself, was afloat susceptible of caring for him.

Suspicious of "deliberate attempts" to impede them, the DSP officials decided to straight sojourn the Bergin home. Upon arrival, they were asked not to disturb Mr Bergin and faced a hold astatine the doorway earlier being led to a bedroom.

There, they were introduced to a antheral successful furniture purportedly Mr Bergin who was described arsenic "deaf and confused."

Det Garda Crosbie expressed doubts astir the individuality of the aged man, noting helium looked excessively young and didn't lucifer a provided photo. Additionally, the idiosyncratic appeared to beryllium dressed successful afloat clothing, including shoes oregon boots nether the covers, and determination were nary aesculapian immunodeficiency contiguous that would beryllium expected for idiosyncratic of his age.

Det Garda Crosbie revealed that helium had located Mr Bergin's sedate successful a cemetery successful Clonad, Co Laois and confirmed with a section undertaker that the accused's father-in-law had passed distant successful November 1993 astatine the property of 82. The detective besides recovered metallic coins, fixed annually by Áras an Uachtaráin to centenarians, during a hunt of Mrs Bergin's location connected May 10, 2022.

He stated that erstwhile questioned astir the coins from the President, Mrs Bergin claimed ignorance. The hunt besides uncovered an uncashed cheque for €2,540 from the President marking Mr Bergin's 100th birthday, receipts from An Post for his pension, and wide cards sent to the household astatine the clip of his funeral.

The tribunal was informed that a reappraisal of DSP records showed Mr Bergin's pension had been claimed for 28 and a fractional years posthumously, portion his daughter-in-law had besides signed assorted forms successful his name. Det Garda Crosbie added that Mrs Bergin failed to look for a scheduled interrogation with gardaí connected July 22, 2022.

He recalled however she arrived astatine the garda presumption an hr late, soon aft helium received a connection from her solicitor stating she was unwell and required clip for aesculapian tests. .

The detective described dealing with the accused astatine that signifier arsenic "very frustrating", starring to Mrs Bergin's apprehension successful September 2022 aft a deficiency of response. During questioning, Mrs Bergin was afloat cooperative, admitting to signing assorted documents and revealing that her husband, Séamus, was contiguous successful the furniture erstwhile DSP officials visited, contrary to her archetypal assertion that helium was distant astatine a marketplace successful Tipperary.

In June, Mrs Bergin paid €35,000 successful compensation, but Judge Keenan Johnson deemed it insufficient and adjourned the lawsuit to let for a much important magnitude to beryllium raised. On Wednesday, defence counsel Damien Colgan informed the tribunal that his lawsuit would supply an further €40,000, stating that determination were nary further funds available, and offered to wage €50 play from her pension.

A missive of apology from Mrs Bergin was besides presented, expressing remorse for her actions. In the letter, Mrs Bergin explained that she had been authorised to retreat her father-in-law's pension portion helium was live but continued to cod it aft his death, feeling trapped.

She expressed shame and embarrassment, pleading with the justice to "show maine arsenic overmuch mercy arsenic you can". The tribunal was informed that Mrs Bergin's wellness is deteriorating and she has go socially isolated, estranged from 1 of her children and her member owed to her crimes.

However, Judge Johnson described the lawsuit arsenic "quite extraordinary" and "an highly superior lawsuit of theft and fraud, resulting successful a ample nonaccomplishment to the State."

He stated that Mrs Bergin's actions were intelligibly premeditated, fixed that her father-in-law's decease was ne'er registered. The justice pointed retired the "repetitive, deliberate and conscious efforts by the accused to defraud the State" adding to her "culpability and the gravity of the offending."

"Every azygous twelvemonth that the fraud went on, the accused actively perpetuated the fraud by forging the signature of the deceased," helium said.

He besides noted that Mrs Bergin's actions undermined the cardinal values of integrity and honesty that the Department relies connected for just societal payment administration. Judge Johnson mentioned mitigating factors specified arsenic Mrs Bergin's blameworthy plea, practice during the aboriginal stages of the investigation, her missive of apology to the court, and aesculapian and probation reports.

The justice expressed his disbelief that the accused acted alone, particularly since her hubby Seamus had impersonated his precocious begetter to deceive societal payment inspectors.

He remarked: "I cannot judge that correspondence, which person been received astatine slightest annually successful the sanction of John Bergin, could not person been seen by different members of the household, peculiarly the correspondence and centenarian coins from Áras an Uachtaráin, which would person been unsocial and noticeable."

"I cannot assistance but feel, contempt her assertions to the contrary, that Mrs Bergin has allowed herself to beryllium offered arsenic a sacrificial lamb for the offending and the afloat work does not remainder exclusively with her."

He further noted that according to the defence's claims, the misappropriated wealth was spent connected buying and food, indirectly benefiting the family, and suggested that "the household should beryllium assisting the accused to marque afloat reimbursement."

The justice expressed his bafflement implicit wherefore portion of the 99-acre household workplace couldn't beryllium sold oregon mortgaged to screen the repayment. Nonetheless, helium acknowledged that the €75,000 outgo did connection immoderate grade of mitigation, though "not arsenic important arsenic it mightiness different person been."

With sizeable regret, Judge Johnson declared helium had nary prime but to condemnation Mrs Bergin to prison.

He said: "Some radical whitethorn consciousness the condemnation is excessively lenient and others whitethorn consciousness it's excessively harsh, however, I person tried to enforce a condemnation that is just and equitable and which sends retired a wide connection that nary substance who you are oregon what your circumstances are, theft from the societal payment money is specified a superior offence due to the fact that of the harm it does to society, that a custodial sentence, peculiarly wherever the theft is prolonged and important arsenic is the lawsuit present volition beryllium unavoidable."