The jury in the trial of a former secondary school principal accused of theft and false accounting in relation to the canteen at Roscommon Community College, has found him not guilty of all charges.
58-year-old Frank Chambers was found not guilty of one count of false accounting which alleged that he had destroyed or concealed a book which had recorded the takings of the canteen, as well as 26 charges which were all counts of theft.
Judge Francis Comerford had already directed the jury to find Mr Chambers not guilty of 7 charges of false accounting.
On the fourth day of the trial he told the jury that there is no basis on which they could bring in a conviction on those charges.
Frank Chambers, of Carnacregg, Moylough, Co Galway had pleaded not guilty to the offences, which were alleged to have occurred while he was principal at Roscommon Community College.
Roscommon Circuit Court, sitting in Sligo, heard that the alleged offences took place on various dates between 2011 and 2017.
It heard that the alleged thefts of cash were initially from Roscommon VEC and later from Galway and Roscommon ETB.
The jury had deliberated for a total of 2 hours and 27 minutes.
Judge Comerford thanked the jury for their service and excused them from jury service for six years.
The trial had lasted for seven days.
Mr Chambers said he never stole a penny in his life
During the trial Mr Chambers had given evidence that he gave out cash which had come from the canteen to teachers for various school-related expenses like paying referees and buying art supplies. He said he also used the money to buy clothes, shoes and, on one occasion, bed linen, for children in need.
He said he never counted the money from the canteen but estimated for an investigation initiated by Galway Roscommon ETB that it was between €100 and €200 a week.
Mr Chambers said he never stole a penny in his life and that the money was used as it was needed for the benefit of the school. He said the children always came first and he never believed he was doing anything wrong.
The prosecution had alleged that the money from the canteen was the property of the VEC initially and from mid 2013, Galway Roscommon ETB, and that Mr Chambers actions had deprived them of oversight of that money.
The prosecution also alleged that he had misled the GRETB investigation and in his evidence had tried to minimise the canteen's income. Patricia Byrne who ran the canteen had told the court that the canteen was taking in between €800 and €1,000 a week. She had also claimed that Mr Chambers had told her he had burned a book in which she had kept a record of the takings. Mr Chambers had vehemently denied this.
Defence barrister Eileen O’Leary had described her client as a kind, compassionate and empathetic man who, she said, should not have been sitting in the dock. Addressing the jury prior to their deliberations, she said there was not a single shred of evidence that he had ever acted dishonestly.
Ms O’Leary said Mr Chambers was entitled to receive this money, he put it in the safe and everybody knew about it and knew that it was there for school needs. All the money was spent on the school, she said.
