Sean Quinn Jnr Loses Court Appeal

Sean Quinn Jnr has lost an appeal against his conviction and prison sentence for contempt of court.

The son of Fermanagh businessman Sean Quinn was jailed in July following a decision that he had breached a court order ordering him not to interfere with Quinn International Property Group assets.

Quinn Jnr was found guilty by a Dublin judge in July when he, his father and cousin Peter Darragh Quinn were charged with putting millions of pounds worth of international property beyond bailed-out Anglo Irish Bank's reach.

The bank was bailed out by Irish taxpayers and is now operating via the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC).

Sean Quinn Senior avoided a jail sentence and Peter Darragh Quinn failed to turn up to court for sentencing. He remains in Northern Ireland, although an Irish warrant for his arrest has been issued.

Sean Quinn Jnr was jailed for an initial three-month period, but this sentence could have been extended if he had failed to comply with court orders.

IBRC says the Quinns owe it £2bn. It is currently attempting to recover the money from their property assets on behalf of Irish taxpayers.

The Quinns did admit to moving assets beyond the reach of IBRC, but they claim they did not breach the court order because they took no further action following the High Court injunction issued on 27 June 2011.

Sean Quinn was once the richest man in Ireland and the 12th richest man in the UK. The family controlled businesses worth billions of pounds and employed thousands of people.

(IT)