A COURT heard that a man who bought a car from an unsuspecting Limerick owner used two cheques drawn on a dormant account to pay for it.
The Limerick District Court, sitting in Kilmallock, heard that Richard Cotter (28), from Castleisland, County Kerry, paid a sum in cash as a deposit on a car he bought from Sean McCarthy of Bruree.
Garda Bob Young told Judge Patricia Harney that, having paid the cash deposit on the car, which was being sold for €8,000, the accused gave Mr McCarthy two cheques to the value of €6,900.
Both cheques had been drawn on a dormant account in the name of Mr Cotter’s father, which had no funds to back them, the court was told.
Inspector Gearoid Thompson told the court that Mr Cotter has previous convictions, two for forgery and one for detection.
The accused man’s solicitor, Michael O’Donnell, said he had €2,000 in cash in court as part compensation for the injured party’s loss and his client was willing to pay the full amount in time.
“He has secured a job and says he will be able to pay the full amount by March, if the court will give him time,” Mr O’Donnell said.
Judge Harney agreed to adjourn the matter until March 22, 2024, to allow for full compensation to be paid.
She warned Mr Cotter that there would be “one adjournment and one only”, adding that the full amount would have to be paid by that date.
