Wednesday 28 October 2026Compiled from published reports. Every claim links to its source.

Ireland Crime

Every case followed from the first report to the sentence, or to where the reporting stopped.

Case No. 3793Possession of a false instrument (passport fraud) · Co. Dublin · 3 Sep 2025

Man jailed for claiming to be son of murdered Irish woman to obtain passport

Sabouni Abdelhamid, 33, was sentenced to three years in prison at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for possessing a false Irish passport card and providing false documentation, having claimed to be the son of murdered Irish woman Catherine Corridan to obtain the passport. He was stopped at Dublin Airport on 3 September 2025 after arriving on a flight from Brussels.

  1. Reportednot reported
  2. Arrestednot reported
  3. Chargednot reported
  4. In courtnot reported
  5. Verdictnot reported
  6. Sentenced18 Feb
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet

Key facts

consolidated from all reports
20 statements extracted from the articles
  • whatAbdelhamid claimed to be the son of murdered Irish woman Catherine Corridan to obtain an Irish passport. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatHe claimed his name was Soufiane Bouchata and produced a British driving licence in that name. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatHe was due to fly from Brussels to Dublin and then on to the UK. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatAuthorities in Brussels took his Irish passport but allowed him to keep his Irish passport card and British driving licence. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatA French national living in France by the name of Bouchata existed but his details did not match Abdelhamid's. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatAbdelhamid's fingerprints were linked to five different aliases and dates of birth. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatHe claimed his mother was Catherine Corridan, who was murdered in London in the 1980s. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whatThere was no record of Catherine Corridan having any children. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whereHe is of Finchley Road, London, England. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whenHe was stopped at Dublin Airport on 3 September 2025 having come off a flight from Brussels. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whenHe applied for the Irish passport online in December 2023. (irishmirror.ie)
  • investigationGardaí contacted Interpol and the Metropolitan police in England. (irishmirror.ie)
  • chargeHe pleaded guilty to possession of a false instrument, an Irish passport card, at Dublin Airport on 3 September 2025. (irishmirror.ie)
  • chargeHe pleaded guilty to providing false and misleading documentation in relation to the passport application. (irishmirror.ie)
  • chargeHe pleaded guilty to having a UK driving licence which was or which he knew to be a false instrument. (irishmirror.ie)
  • courtThe case was heard at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. (irishmirror.ie)
  • sentenceJudge Orla Crowe said a headline sentence of six years was warranted. (irishmirror.ie)
  • sentenceA three-year sentence was imposed, backdated to when he was first remanded in custody in September 2025. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherHe has one previous conviction under one of his aliases for a similar offence. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherHe moved to France from Algeria and had been living there. (irishmirror.ie)

The reporting

newest first
  1. 18 Feb2026
    Sentencedirishmirror.ie, first report
    Man who claimed to be son of murdered Irishwoman to get Irish passport jailed

    Sentencing details: three-year sentence backdated to September 2025 remand, headline sentence of six years, guilty pleas to three charges including possession of false Irish passport card, false documentation, and false UK driving licence.

    convicted, Sabouni Abdelhamid, 33, male, Algerian, named, non-irishSabouni Abdelhamidvictim, Catherine Corridan, female, Irish, irishCatherine Corridan