One of the leading car dealers in the north east has been convicted of engaging in a price-fixing cartel.
Jack Doran, who was twice president of the Citroen Dealers Association, has been given a three-month suspended prison sentence.
His company has been fined €20,000.
The 58-year-old car dealer, from Bettystown, Co Meath pleaded guilty at Trim Circuit Criminal Court to a charge that between 1999 and 2002 they entered an agreement to fix the price of Citroen cars.
Senior Inspector with the Competition Authority, Thomas Fitzpatrick, told the court that the authority had obtained statements from a number of whistleblowers and minutes of meetings of the Citroen Dealers Association where they agreed to fix the price of new and second-hand cars.
The Citroen Dealers Association also policed the cartel to ensure the dealers didn't break the agreement. Any that did would be fined, according to Mr Fitzpatrick.
For the defence, senior council Michael O'Higgins, said profit margins were very tight in the industry. His client was trading for his survival and the deal was not done out of greed or maximising profit.
Judge Michael O'Shea said the consumer always loses out when dealers get together to fix prices.
