Sheila Aherne, a woman of 61 years old, disguised herself with a scarf and a mask akin to that worn for Covid-19 protection when she visited a Fermoy credit union in County Cork. Utilising a credit union book that belonged to her recently deceased cousin, she made a withdrawal of nearly €22,000. For her actions, Aherne was incarcerated for nine months.
The presiding judge at the Cork Circuit Criminal Court, John Martin, expressed his disapproval of Aherne, who he said had exploited her 77-year-old cousin’s death as an avenue to commit her crime. Judge Martin iterated that following the demise of pensioner Kathleen Cahill, a time should have been designated for mourning and reminiscence, as opposed to Aherne displaying disrespect for her cousin’s memory.
Judge Martin criticised Aherne’s conduct stating, Aherne went under the guise of her deceased cousin, to profit personally. She hacked her bank account, infiltrated her credit union, and imitated her. Unfortunately for her, she was caught, with only €50 not recovered. The individual she filched money from was someone she was familiar with. Furthermore, the act itself took place amid a family’s most challenging time.
Martin pointed out that Aherne, a resident of Liam Burke Terrace, Ballyhooly, County Cork, appeared to show no reservations about denying the heir of the deceased access to their inheritance. The incident transpired just two days post Cahill’s death.
Detective Garda Brian O’Connor testified that Aherne concealed her identity using a scarf and Covid mask while fraudulently presenting herself as Kathleen Cahill, her late relative, at the Synergy credit union in Fermoy, County Cork on December 22, 2022. Aherne proceeded to zero out the account, claiming its entire contents of over €21,900, chiefly in cheque form.
She attempted to deposit the cheque in her personal bank account, located in Fermoy. Since the cheque was in a different name, the transaction was not successful. Aherne made another visit to the credit union, yet again masked and scarfed. She requested the teller to issue a cheque in her own name, Sheila Aherne, pretending she was Kathleen Cahill and claimed Sheila Aherne was her niece.
Aherne subsequently returned to her personal bank to deposit the cheque, an act that raised suspicions, leading to her arrest and charges of theft, fraud and money laundering. She registered a guilty plea for all accusations.
The judge, Martin, recognised Aherne’s deep contrition for her actions, acknowledging her apology to Ms Cahill’s family. He took into account her quick admission of guilt in the District Court, saying, “You did not extend the suffering, and you confronted it. It’s clear that you feel disgrace, humiliation and regret.”
Martin addressed the subject of Aherne’s former conviction for shoplifting, citing it as an “exacerbating issue” in the proceedings. After considering damning evidence, he suggested a suitable sentence would be around three years imprisonment, without taking into account potential extenuating circumstances.
However, after acknowledging the extenuating circumstances such as Aherne’s challenging personal situation, he sentenced her to an 18-month jail term, with the final nine months suspended.
During the trial, Aherne revealed to Judge Martin her close relationship with her late cousin. Patrick Cahill, a son of the now deceased Kathleen Cahill, informed the Judge that Aherne frequently assisted with his late mother’s shopping.
“My mother was always good to her. She was compensated for everything she did for her,” said Patrick Cahill. “My mother’s passing was a difficult time. Receiving the call about the theft on the night of my mother’s wake… that I will never remove from my memory.”
He added, “I was unable to fully mourn my mother’s passing. This situation haunted my thoughts throughout the funeral. My mother painstakingly worked for everything she earned.”