Many people have puzzled over the low sentence (Personal fined €15,000. Company to pay €10,000) that has been handed out to Mr Michael Lowry TD for his tax evasion. A lot of people across Ireland was actually shocked at the miserable sentence he got.
It was in fact, the first time that many can remember, that anyone – TD or not – was vocally delighted to national media on been found guilty and getting the punishment they did.
The judge Martin Nolan even went out of his way to call Mr Lowry a “conscientious taxpayer” – an extraordinary statement from any judge since the founding of the Irish state. What make it even more remarkable is:
(a) Mr Lowry had ducked paying €372,000 in tax.
(b) Previously (06/06/2018), a doctor Bassam Naser failed to pay three times less in tax (€100,000). His punishment – 16 months in prison.
(c) The two cases were within the same month.
(d) The two cases were heard by the same judge.
Michael Lowry/Kevin Phelan phonecall tape #lowrytapes *Warning – strong language*
It must have skipped the judge’s attention or he deliberate considered it irrelevant also when assessing the character of a TD charged before him, that Mr Lowry was also reported to be named as one of the individuals allegedly involved in the Panama tax scandal.
Many voters across Ireland were already reeling from the puny sentence of six years that one David Drumm gained in relation to €7.2 Billion of the public’s money, during his Anglo Bank fraud antics. Before the public shock and dust had time to settle on his sentencing – then came the Lowry token punishment!
The costs of the legal case taken against Mr Lowry, to obtain a guilty verdict stands now at over €7,000,000+. No wonder he is willing to smile then for cameras at just getting fined €15,000 personally?
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Elected Failing To Mention.
What most people don’t know, is that had Mr Lowry been sentenced harder, he would have possibly automatic lost his TD seat (thus some of all of his later wages, perks and pensions) according to Dail rules in place for elected found guilty of a serious crime.
Had be been sentenced harder, Fine Gael who are still using Mr Lowry as an additional number to keep them in power, would have been in trouble (even slightly) to hang on in government office. It was lucky then for Mr Lowry and Fine Gael that the sentence was so remarkable light.
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Many voters will remember that Mr Lowry is also named in the alleged money for Esat mobile phone contract fiasco, that ended up as another national scandal – via a resulting national tribunal.
This time also involving Denis O’Brien – the same man that backs Fine Gael – the same party that needs Mr Lowry to stay on as a TD so he can then continue backing them for the time being, to keep them in government or make sure that certain bills get voted through easier.
This is the same Fine Gael government that also welcomed and gushed over one Mrs Lagarde from the IMF. A person found guilty of massive financial crimes herself. Her amount equaling €400,000,000. LINK.
What does it say about any government that is directly connected to such people – and all too willing to associate with them!
…But as a Garda might say.
” There’s nothing funny happening here – move along please!”
“Nothing funny” is right, to say the least!
* Credit to Seamus Ward for his great research in finding out some of the facts above.
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