Seán Quinn jnr in moves to purge contempt

Seán Quinn jnr, the son of jailed businessman Seán Quinn, is to travel to Moscow to get statements concerning bank accounts held there by himself and some other family members, the High Court was told yesterday.

Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne welcomed that development and other news that Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formerly Anglo Irish Bank, is accepting Seán Quinn jnr’s offer to sell his Dublin home.

Those were “two positive developments” in the efforts by Mr Quinn to purge his contempt of court orders, she said.

The judge last June made findings of contempt against Mr Quinn, his father and cousin, Peter Darragh Quinn, of orders restraining stripping of assets from the family’s international property group.

Mr Quinn was jailed for three months and served that, while his father was later jailed for nine weeks and remains in jail. A warrant for the arrest of Peter Darragh Quinn to serve a three-month term remains unexecuted while he remains at home in Northern Ireland.

Anxious to purge contempt

Mr Quinn has said he is anxious to purge his contempt and, yesterday, the judge was told by Shane Murphy SC, for IBRC, the bank had decided to accept his offer to sell the home he shares with his wife Karen Woods at Alder Lodge, Farmleigh Woods, Castleknock, Co Dublin, Matters had to be addressed in that regard, whether via a charge or otherwise, counsel said.

The bank also consented to Mr Quinn’s offer to go to Moscow to get statements concerning accounts held by Mr Quinn and other family members in Ocean Bank. The court previously heard that bank would not release statements unless an account-holders appeared in person.

Issues about funding of the Moscow trip are to be discussed later between the sides in circumstances where a freezing order remains on Mr Quinn’s accounts.

‘Third-party’ funds

Mr Murphy said the bank considered it was not necessary for a bank representative to travel with Mr Quinn and he should pay the costs of the trip. It seemed Mr Quinn has access to a “third-party” contribution to his legal costs which was not from a company in the Quinns international property group, counsel added.

Martin Hayden SC, for Mr Quinn, said the money referred to by Mr Murphy were not owed directly to IBRC.

The judge said the trip was a useful and positive development and the costs issue should be addressed between the sides.

Given the developments, Mr Murphy, with the consent of Mr Hayden, secured an adjournment of the proceedings to January 25th next.

Mr Quinn Jnr was jailed for contempt after Ms Justice Dunne found he was involved in a €500,000 payment made in late August 2011 to Larissa Puga, general director of Quinn Properties Ukraine. The contempt proceedings were brought in the action by IBRC aimed at protecting more than €430m assets in the international property group.

Freezing orders

Separately yesterday, lawyers for three people who hold accounts jointly with Peter Darragh Quinn secured leave from Mr Justice Peter Kelly to apply today to vary freezing orders on those accounts to permit them pay money towards mortgage payments. Arrears had built up as a result of the freezing orders and the matter was urgent, the judge was told.