Gardai powerless as Lynn to testify by video in Irish court
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GARDAI will be powerless to act when fugitive solicitor Michael Lynn gives evidence via video-link from London in a €400m lawsuit.
Lynn, who is missing with fraudulent mortgage debts in excess of €80m and faces immediate arrest if he turns up in the country, was set to give evidence on October 7 in a High Court action between multi-millionaire property developer Brian Cunningham and lender First Active.
But the case has been set back to October 10 to accommodate a trial at the Central Criminal Court, which is using video-link facilities.
The barrister for Brian Cunningham, when applying to postpone the taking of Mr Lynn's evidence, also noted that Lynn (39) will celebrate his birthday on October 7.
Arrest risk
The struck-off solicitor originally agreed to give evidence from the Hungarian capital, Budapest, stating he would not risk arrest by travelling to Ireland to testify in the First Active litigation.
He will now testify live via video-link from London's Covent Garden and is expected to be interrogated by lawyers acting for Mr Cunningham and First Active for at least three days.
And after more than a year on the run, members of the public and the press who wish to hear Lynn give evidence will be able to watch proceedings live from a viewing gallery at Long Acre, the plush serviced offices complex in Covent Garden.
Lynn is a key witness in the protracted case between Brian Cunningham, his former star client, and First Active.
Mr Cunningham is suing First Active over the bank's decision to appoint a receiver to the group in 2003 over debts of more than €30m.
It is expected that Lynn will claim that First Active was running the group and will accuse the institution of unsavoury conduct in their dealings with the property developer.
But Lynn's credibility as a witness will also be challenged as a result of his escape from the Irish authorities; his refusal to travel to Ireland to testify; and his own property dealings.
Helpless
Senior gardai investigating the rogue lawyer and property entrepreneur will watch on helplessly when Lynn gives evidence in the trial, which may last until the end of the year.
Last December, the High Court executed a bench warrant for his arrest, but because the warrant relates to civil proceedings only, it is not enforceable in a foreign country.
Although Britain, like Ireland, is a signatory country to the European Arrest Warrant Act, an EU-wide warrant can only be issued if legal proceedings are under way, or if the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) gives the go-ahead for criminal charges to be brought.
But senior gardai say they are some way off the stage where a European or international warrant can be sought because inquiries are ongoing.
A senior garda officer said last night that the investigation by the Garda Fraud Bureau into complaints against Lynn would not be completed for a number of months, but said that his continued absence was not hampering their inquiries at present as detectives were still gathering information about the complex complaints.
"At some stage, we will be anxious to interview Lynn to put the allegations to him," said the officer. "But that stage has not been reached yet, although if he did return home in the morning we would take the opportunity to interview him."
The fraud bureau launched the investigation after complaints were lodged by financial institutions, alleging that Lynn had defrauded them in relation to mortgages.
The Commercial Court, the big business division of the High Court, referred Lynn's activities to the fraud squad. The president of the High Court also referred Lynn to the DPP to see if any criminal charges could be brought in relation to his defiance of a court order questions about his property dealings.
After the gardai have completed their file on Lynn, it will then be sent to the DPP who will determine if criminal charges should be brought against him.
The DPP's review of the file is also expected to take several months.
- Dearbhail McDonald and Tom Brady
