The High Court has cleared the way for the Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) to take over the management and maintenance of five properties owned by convicted drug dealer John Gilligan and his family.
Mr Justice Kevin Feeney yesterday appointed a receiver to the properties but also directed that, pending the final outcome of court proceedings over the properties, Gilligan's ex-wife Geraldine and their son, Darren, could continue to live on in two of the properties without charge and as caretakers.
The judgment came following a five-day hearing of an application by Cab to have its legal officer appointed as receiver to Jessbrook Equestrian Centre in Enfield, Co Meath, a house attached to the centre, two houses in Lucan and the original Gilligan family home in Corduff Avenue, Blanchardstown.
Cab argued the properties were at risk because they were uninsured while, it claimed, Jessbrook appeared to be abandoned and was in a state of dilapidation. Cab were not seeking to sell them but wanted to take over the running and maintenance to ensure they did not lose value until separate court proceedings on ownership have been heard.
The Gilligans argued the receivership application should not be heard because of a pending Supreme Court appeal arising out of another court decision which found the properties had been acquired with the proceeds of crime. They also denied that Jessbrook had been abandoned and claimed the State had trespassed on it to take photos for the purpose of the application to appoint a receiver.
Jessbrook is owned by Mrs Gilligan who, the court accepted, used it as her main residence although she did spend a lot of time with her daughter, Tracey, in Alicante in Spain.
A house at Willsbrook Avenue, Lucan, is jointly owned by Tracey and her father, but is being "house sat" by a taxi driver and is occasionally used by Tracey when she comes back to Ireland.
A house at Weston Green, Lucan, owned by Darren and his father, is being rented for €1,300 per month, which Darren claimed, was his only source of income. The former family home in Blanchardstown is Darren's residence.
Yesterday, Mr Justice Feeney rejected Gilligan's claim that the receivership application could not be heard because of a separate Supreme Court order in relation to varying the previous High Court decision that the properties were bought with the proceeds of crime.
The judge said he was satisfied those proceedings did not relate to the receivership application.
He ordered that while all properties should be put into receivership, Mrs Gilligan could continue to live on at the house in Jessbrook and Darren could continue to live at Corduff Green.
The judge rejected a claim by the Gilligan's that a Cab officer who had inspected and taken photographs of Jessbrook in July and December last year had done so in order to prepare this receivership application.
The officer had gone to the premises to "clarify the occupancy and use" of the property following reports of horses on the land and cars coming and going into it, he found.
The judge rejected the Gilligans' claim that the officer had trespassed on Jessbrook and ruled the inspection was carried out in good faith and was not a conscious and deliberate trespass.
The condition of Jessbrook during the officer's first visit in July showed there had been little or no use of the equestrian centre or of the driveway up to the house, although the situation had improved somewhat by the time of the second visit in December, he said.
The absence of insurance on any on the properties was a major issue and the court was satisfied the most likely way of ensuring they would be insured was by appointing a receiver.
Mr Justice Feeney rejected arguments that the Cab legal officer, Frank Cassidy, was not an appropriate person to appoint as receiver. The receiver's obligations were to the court and any contentious matters in the receivership could be dealt with by applying to the court for directions, he said.
Mr Justice Feeney adjourned the case for a month to allow Cab put caretaker agreements in place and also reserved the issue of legal costs. He refused an application for a stay on his orders to allow the Gilligans appeal.
John Gilligan said he was seeking a transcript of the hearing for the purpose of an appeal, including one under the European Convention on Human Rights. The judge directed that transcripts be provided.