‘No Garda tracker probe’

Criminal investigation can’t be launched into banks without credible evidence, says police force

GARDAÍ won’t launch a criminal investigation into the tracker mortgage scandal until its economic crime unit is presented with credible evidence, it emerged yesterday.

There have been widespread calls for a full probe into the behaviour of the banks, and a number of people are understood to have already made criminal complaints to gardaí.

A Garda spokesman yesterday confirmed it had received ‘enquiries’ from private individuals but said no investigation had been launched.

‘An allegation of fraudulent activity in relation to tracker mortgages has not been reported to the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, however GNECB remains available to advise on any local complaint.

‘Complaints reported to An Garda Síochána would be assessed for criminality and a formal investigation would only commence where the assessment process identified credible allegations of criminality,’ a spokesman said.

The Garda response to the scandal was last night described as ‘wholly inadequate’, by mortgage campaigner David Hall, head of the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation, who made a complaint of alleged fraud earlier this year.

He said: ‘I made the complaint to the local Garda station, as anyone would. Apparently, it wasn’t passed on or taken seriously. They don’t have the skill set or man power.’

Mr Hall said he is ‘taking advice’ on whether to refer the lack of action on his complaint to Garda ombudsman GSOC.

The Garda spokesman confirmed that only three forensic accountants now work for the GNECB, after one accountant retired recently. Two new forensic accountants had been recruited this year in response to concern over lack of resources but the total has been cut again to just three.

Mr Hall said this was inadequate to deal with fraud nationally even without the tracker scandal.

He also said that ideally, the Garda wouldn’t require people to report tracker issues, adding that An Garda Síochána should have the facility to ‘go out and investigate it anyway’.

‘What’s wrong with positive action?’ he asked.

Mr Hall said ‘the bar for proving fraud is too high’ and called for new regulations to impose ethical behaviour on financial institutions. He also called for a watchdog separate from the Central Bank to look after consumer affairs and ‘force banks to be ethical’.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank should use ‘fitness and probity’ regulations for bankers to debar individuals involved in unethical behaviour. ‘They should get a yellow card with no pay increase or move to another banking job until this is all finished. And I think it’s going to take a long time yet.’

Meanwhile, the Central Bank indicated yesterday that it may clamp down on individual bankers over unethical behaviour in the tracker loan scandal.

The Bank has powers to investigate the ‘fitness and probity’ of

senior executives and non-executive board members under the 2010 Central Bank Reform Act.

A spokesman for the Bank told the Mail that it uses ‘a wide range of tools to take action against regulated entities and individuals which fall short of our expected standards of behaviour including… fitness and probity investigations.

‘The core function of the regime is to ensure persons in senior positions are competent and capable, honest, ethical and of integrity. Enforcement investigations are detailed and forensic and involve the scrutiny of large volumes of documentation and interviews with relevant individuals.’

Ger Deering, the Financial Services Ombudsman, urged aggrieved tracker mortgage holders to have patience and they will get justice and, where appropriate, substantial compensation.

‘I know it’s frustrating but it’s best they remain on hold until the end of the tracker examination when we will have more information available,’ he said. ‘Plus, it allows customers to go through the process with their own bank.’

Tracker holders who are unhappy with the offer from their bank can go to the Ombudsman. He stressed that his office can now deal with cases that are more than six years old after new legislation removed a controversial statute of limitations. His office has dealt with 700 tracker cases, with another 500 on hold pending the outcome of the Central Bank inquiry.

‘Each case we deal with can be awarded up to €250,000 in compensation and there is no limit to the amount of redress from having their tracker mortgage reinstated. That could depend on interest rates going forward for twenty years,’ he said.

‘Based on some stories (about hardship resulting from tracker issues) some would be at the higher end of the compensation scale. But each complaint will be looked at on its own merit,’ he said.

‘The bar proving fraud is too high’