An entrepreneur, awaiting trial for almost 90 revenue, forgery and reckless filing of company information offences, has claimed in court that dozens of extra charges were brought with “malicious intent”.
Businessman Illann Power, 32, a company director from Co Carlow, was arrested in 2022 following an investigation by the Corporate Enforcement Authority (CEA).
He originally faced three charges of providing false information contrary to Section 876 of the Companies Act 2014 and knowingly or recklessly furnishing information to an electronic filing agent from 2014 to 2017.
The prosecution, which started in 2022, has been before Dublin District Court, which had accepted jurisdiction to hear the contested case.
Mr Power had said he wished to clear his good name, and his non-jury District Court hearing was to go ahead on October 29th.
However, the court then heard that “a connected matter led to a reappraisal of this matter,” and the DPP issued a new direction for trial on indictment, elevating the trial venue, which can impose lengthier sentences.
He was also further charged with 84 new criminal allegations
Among them is a forgery charge. He is alleged to have electronically amended a High Court order on dates between December 1st and December 14th, 2022, with the intention that it be used to “induce another person to accept it as genuine” to the prejudice of that person or any other person.
He is also accused of electronically altering a High Court order in a way that had a tendency to “pervert the course of public justice” by adding information that was not granted by the court.
The other 82 charges relate to alleged breaches of tax law and VAT.
Gardaí served him with two books of evidence at Dublin District Court on Thursday, and Judge William Aylmer granted return for trial orders.
He told the businessman, representing himself, that he was being returned for trial to the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, where his case will be listed on February 6 next.
He remains on bail and told Judge Aylmer the extra charges were brought with “malicious intent”, and he referred to legal proceedings in the United States, adding, “and I would like that recorded”
Judge Aylmer gave him the standard warning that he must notify the prosecution if he intends to rely on an alibi in his trial, and the court also ordered gardaí to hand over copies of interview videos to the defendant.
Power was previously a founder of spirits company Incubrands, which Bacardi later acquired. He later co-created Nohovation, a start-up venture fund and investment firm, Illann Power Companies.
Initially, he had been granted bail with strict conditions, including signing on daily at a local Garda station and surrendering his travel documents.
However, those conditions were later relaxed to allow Power to work in America. He was allowed to keep his passport and green card and to move to the US after the court heard he had every intention of returning to Ireland to face the proceedings.
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