File sent to DPP over alleged €200,000 fraud involving two Sinn Féin politicians in Cork
An alleged €200,000 fraud at a Cork company, involving fraudulent payments of invoices for relief work and holiday pay and payments for the return of pallets between 2014 and 2019, led to the arrest of two Sinn Féin politicians. Kenneth Collins, a Sinn Féin councillor for the Cork North West Ward who was a truck driver at the company, was arrested by appointment on 3 January 2025 at Togher Garda station, and Thomas Gould, the Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD who had been a logistics manager there for 16 years, was arrested by appointment on 7 March 2025 at the same station. Both men were questioned for around 10 hours and released without charge. Gardaí completed a near five-year investigation and sent an almost 600-page file to the DPP in August 2026. Both men deny the allegations.
- Reported
- Arrested
- Charged
- In court
- Verdict
- Sentenced
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- The alleged fraud was worth €200,000 and involved fraudulent payments of invoices for relief work and holiday pay and payments for the return of pallets at a Cork company.
- Thomas Gould is the Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD who was a logistics manager at the company for 16 years before becoming a full-time politician in 2020.
- Kenneth Collins is a Sinn Féin councillor for the Cork North West Ward on Cork City Council who was employed as a truck driver at the same company.
- Where
- The company was in Cork and arrests took place at Togher Garda station.
- When
- The alleged fraud occurred between 2014 and 2019.
- Investigation
- Collins was arrested by appointment on 3 January 2025 at Togher Garda station and questioned for around 10 hours.
- Gould was arrested by appointment on 7 March 2025 at Togher Garda station and questioned for 10 hours.
- Both men were released without charge.
- Gardaí sent an almost 600-page file to the DPP in August 2026 after completing a near five-year investigation.
- Other details
- Both men deny the allegations.
20 statements extracted from the articles
- whatThe alleged fraud was worth €200,000 at a Cork company (irishtimes.com)
- whatThomas Gould is the Cork North Central Sinn Féin TD (irishtimes.com)
- whatKenneth Collins is a Sinn Féin councillor representing the Cork North West Ward on Cork City Council (irishtimes.com)
- whatGould was employed at the company before becoming a full-time politician (irishtimes.com)
- whatCollins was employed as a truck driver at the same company (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe investigation centred on an alleged fraudulent payment of invoices for relief work and holiday pay (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe investigation also centred on an alleged fraudulent payment of money for the return of pallets (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe company operated a payment scheme for all pallets returned after deliveries (irishtimes.com)
- whatGould was a logistics manager at the company where he worked for 16 years (irishtimes.com)
- whenGould was arrested by appointment on 7 March 2025 at Togher Garda station in Cork (irishtimes.com)
- whenThe alleged fraud happened between 2014 and 2019 (irishtimes.com)
- whenCollins was arrested by appointment on 3 January 2025 at Togher Garda station (irishtimes.com)
- whenGould was elected to Dáil Éireann in 2020 (irishtimes.com)
- investigationGardaí sent a file to the DPP after completing a near five-year investigation (irishtimes.com)
- investigationThe file forwarded to the DPP was almost 600 pages (irishtimes.com)
- investigationGould was questioned for 10 hours (irishtimes.com)
- investigationCollins was questioned for around 10 hours (irishtimes.com)
- investigationBoth men were released without charge (irishtimes.com)
- investigationThe file includes memos of interviews, witness statements, company records and receipts (irishtimes.com)
- otherBoth men deny the allegations (irishtimes.com)
The reporting
newest first- 17 Aug2026File sent to DPP on two Sinn Féin politicians facing €200,000 fraud investigation
Reports that the Garda investigation is complete and the file has been forwarded to the DPP, detailing the allegations of fraudulent invoice payments and pallet return payments spanning 2014–2019, and confirming both men were released without charge.
accused, Thomas Gould, male, named, irish (judged from name)Thomas Gouldaccused, Kenneth Collins, male, named, irish (judged from name)Kenneth Collins