A Dublin man has applied to have the Criminal Assets Bureau return deeds of properties to him. Gerry Hutch, who is also known as "The Monk", of the Paddocks Clontarf, settled a personal injuries action against the state and claims he bought a number of properties with the money.
He now needs to sell the properties in order to pay lawyers to represent him in his challenge to a two million pounds tax bill. The Criminal Assets Bureau is looking for judgement against him in the High Court for that amount.
Today Mr. Hutch had legal representation in the High Court when Mr. Justice O'Higgins fixed 20 April to hear the Criminal Assets Bureau application for £2million it claims he owes in income tax. Last week, his solicitor Gabrielle Wolfe told the court her client had no money to pay counsel and could not realise his assets because the Bureau had seized property deeds.
She refuted suggestions that Mr. Hutch was trying to delay the court proceedings. Today, Barrister Richard Humphreys, representing Mr. Hutch explained that his client was a plaintiff in a personal injuries action against the State and used that money to buy a number of properties. Mr. Humphreys said that it seemed bizarre that the State pays for its own negligence and then that a state agency seizes the deeds and claims that the properties are the proceeds of crime.
The Criminal Assets Bureau, he contended has no right to retain these deeds which are understood to relate to properties in the Lower Buckingham St. area of Dublin. The High Court will hear his application on the property deeds next week and the CAB application for the two million pounds judgement will be held in April. Counsel for Mr. Hutch indicated that he will also be raising issues relating to the constitutionality of the relevant tax legislation.
