Regency hotel victim’s sister loses lavishly revamped home to CAB
THE sister of Regency Hotel murder victim David Byrne has forfeited her Dublin home to the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) after it had been refurbished for €740,000.
The Crumlin property owned by Maria Byrne was the last of 47 assets confiscated by CAB in a major investigation running almost three years.
A further €26,760 in a deposit account has also been seized from Ms Byrne – whose brother was shot dead in the Regency Hotel.
While the home at 2 Raleigh Square, Crumlin, was registered to Ms Byrne, another brother, Liam, had been pay-
ing rent and residing there.
Liam Byrne, the main target of the investigation, has previously been described as the leader of the Byrne organised crime group, which has close ties to Daniel Kinahan.
Sources said the property had been refurbished by the mobster for €740,000, including an indoor bar, hot tubs and state-of-the-art security systems.
Chandeliers had been dotted around the once-modest three-bedroom home, including in the utility room.
Yesterday, the High Court was told that this home and a deposit account were the final items to be dealt with in the
CAB case.
A five-day period had been set aside next week when Ms Byrne was expected to contest the confiscation of the property. However, counsel for CAB told the court that an agreement had been reached and signed on consent.
The rent payments by Liam Byrne were made through accounts of LS Active Car Sales, a business used as a slush-fund for the gang and to launder their ill-gotten gains.
The property at 2 Raleigh Square had been bought legitimately for around €250,000 before being refurbished significantly.
Ms Byrne had initially claimed the renovation work carried out on the house totalled €433,000 and was paid for through legitimate means, However, no explanation was given for the source of these monies and the CAB was satisfied it was renovated for €740,000 from the proceeds of crime.
An account containing €26,760 was also seized and a further €10,000 was to be forfeited to pay solicitors’ fees.
Judge Carmel Stewart said she was satisfied with the agreement reached and made the order on the consent agreement under Section 4a of the Proceeds of Crime Act.
She put a stay on the order giving the Byrnes four months to vacate the property.
The house will now be transferred to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and sold on, with the proceeds going to the exchequer.