A man accused of depriving investors of €177,000 headed a company called Pear Shaped Resources, it was claimed in court today.
Donegal Circuit Court was told the company was set up in January 2004 in the British Virgin Islands and the share capital was in US dollars.
Thomas Elvin, 50, faces 26 counts of operating as an illegal investor on a variety of dates between 2003 and 2005, and of deceiving people of their cash, including life savings in at least one instance during the same period.
He is alleged to have committed the offences at a number of locations in Donegal Town, Ballybofey and Cloghan, Co Donegal.
Prosecutor Patricia McLaughlin told a jury of six men and six women that there were two nominee directors of Pear Shaped Resources but effectively it was run by Mr Elvin who had power of attorney.
A Florida-based associate, Larry Marsella, worked for Pear Shaped.
The prosecution said there were seven victims of a series of actions by Elvin and there would be evidence from six of them.
The seventh, Elizabeth Duncan, is dead.
Following the death of her husband, John, and receipt of his insurance policies, she and her daughter, Sharman, effectively invested all of their savings, €102,034, through Mr Elvin.
Ms McLaughlin said: "None of that money was returned. There was no return on the investment. The capital source has not been returned."
The jury was told that the prosecution claimed Elvin, of Meencargagh, Ballybofey, operated as an investor without authorisation.
He was a director of Countrywide Ltd, established in 1977, but it was taken off the companies' register in August 2000 when returns were not filed but it continued trading and it had an account in the Ulster Bank and some of the money in the case had been lodged to that account.
When the bank became aware of the company's status in 2004 the account was frozen.
Mr Elvin later registered another company, Countrywide Provident, and more money in the case was lodged to its account.
Ms McLaughlin said investigating gardaí were able to identify that between €80,000 and €100,000 of the €177,000 was sent to Larry Marsella in Florida.
He invested it in a company called ForEx, a high-risk investment firm where there could be substantial gains but the risk was huge. Half of the money was lost there.
The balance of about €49,000 was returned to Elvin.
The jury was told that, after the establishment of Pear Shaped Resources, investors were given shares certificates in it.
Ms McLaughlin said not a single penny of what was invested by seven people through Mr Elvin was recovered.
When the charges were read to him, Mr Elvin said clearly to each before Judge John O'Hagan: "Definitely not guilty."
One witness told the trial that she took €3,500 out of the credit union to invest with him after her brother told her that Mr Elvin had a great investment opportunity offering 20% interest on your money after 40 days.
She said she had taken out a mortgage through Mr Elvin and she trusted him but she got no return on her money and never got her capital back.
Her brother described Mr Elvin as a “financial wizard” and said he took his word. He invested €20,000.
Mr Elvin’s barrister suggested to him that his client had made him aware it was a risky investment but he took a gamble. Mr Elvin denies the 26 charges against him and the trial continues tomorrow.
