THE JURY IN the trial of three senior executives of Anglo Irish Bank has been sent home following the first full day of deliberations.
The jury will resume their discussions at 10.30am tomorrow after not yet reaching a verdict in the trial.
Over the course of today, the jury had requested court transcripts of the evidence given by Matt Moran and Fiachra O’Neill, former directors of the bank, during the course of the trial.
Earlier, the jury had also requested a copy of loan documentation relating to Seán Quinn’s wife, Patricia.
The trial of the three accused began 68 days ago on 5 February, making it one of the longest-running trials of its kind.
Seán FitzPatrick of Greystones, Pat Whelan of Malahide, and William McAteer of Auburn Villas in Rathmines have all pleaded not guilty to providing unlawful financial assistance to the Maple Ten to buy shares in the bank as its share price crumbled in 2008.
Seán Fitzpatrick faces ten separate charges, while Whelan and McAteer face 16 charges each. The judge has already ordered the jury to discount several other charges against FitzPatrick and Whelan.
Judge Martin Nolan has told the jury that the three men cannot be blamed for the “financial calamity” caused by the collapse of the bank.
He told the 12-person jury – which was reduced by two members on Friday afternoon following a ballot – that they needed to have the “moral courage” to decide the case based only on the facts, leaving aside the personality of the men and the role of the financial regulator.
- Reporting by Christina Finn
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