Thursday 5 November 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. 29897Theft; fraud (using false documents to obtain money) · Co. Cork · 1 Oct 2013

Man sentenced to five years for theft and fraud in Cork

Mervyn Tanner, 46, of Mallow, Co Cork, ran a business lending money to people struggling to obtain loans and defrauded five victims out of over €200,000, including Laura Murphy who lost €120,000 of an inheritance. He was arrested by appointment in December 2018 and pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and five counts of using false documents to obtain money at Cork Circuit Criminal Court. In September 2021, Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin sentenced him to five years in jail, applying a two-year discount for his guilty plea.

  1. Reportednot reported
  2. Arrestednot reported
  3. Chargednot reported
  4. In courtnot reported
  5. Verdictnot reported
  6. Sentenced28 Sep
    2 reports
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet

Key facts

consolidated from all reports
What happened
  • Mervyn Tanner, 46, of Buttery Court, Market Square, Mallow, Co Cork, ran a business lending money to people struggling to obtain loans elsewhere.
  • Laura Murphy inherited €218,000 when her brother died and planned to use it to pay off a €225,000 mortgage, but Tanner persuaded her to invest it instead.
  • Tanner defrauded five victims out of over €200,000, with individual losses including €120,000, over €40,000, over €43,000, and €5,000.
  • Tanner produced fraudulent bank statements and forged documents to convince his victims he would repay them.
Where
The offences took place at various locations in Co Cork.
When
The offences occurred on various dates between October 2013 and March 2016, or from November 2010 to December 2015.
Investigation
Tanner was arrested by appointment in December 2018 after a concerned employee raised the alarm, and Det Garda James O'Reilly of the Garda Economic Crime Investigation Unit at Anglesea Street, Cork, presented the evidence.
Charges
Tanner pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and five counts of using false documents to obtain money.
In court
The case was heard at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.
Sentence
Judge Seán Ó Donnabháin sentenced him to five years in jail, applying a two-year discount for his guilty plea.
Other details
Tanner had no relevant previous convictions and was a separated father of three.
38 statements extracted from the articles
  • whatMervyn Tanner, 46, is from Buttery Court, Market Square, Mallow, Co Cork. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatLaura Murphy came into an inheritance of €218,000 when her brother died. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatShe initially planned to use the money to pay off the remainder of a €225,000 mortgage. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatTanner advised her to continue paying her mortgage at the same rate and to invest the money. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatShe gave Tanner €212,000 on the understanding that some would be invested with companies such as New Ireland and Aviva. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatShe learned that he was withdrawing the money and ended up paying penalties. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatMs Murphy ended up at a loss of €120,000. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatHe made admissions in relation to thefts and forging documents intended to convince his victims he would repay them. (irishtimes.com)
  • whatMervyn Tanner, 46, is of Buttery Court, Market Square, Mallow, Co Cork (rte.ie)
  • whatHe defrauded customers out of over €200,000 (rte.ie)
  • whatHe set up a business which primarily lent money to people struggling to obtain a loan elsewhere (rte.ie)
  • whatOne victim inherited money following the death of a sibling which she planned to use to pay off her mortgage (rte.ie)
  • whatTanner persuaded the woman to invest the inherited money (rte.ie)
  • whatThe woman is at a loss of €120,000 and still making mortgage payments (rte.ie)
  • whatIn her victim impact statement, the woman said what Tanner did was a betrayal of her brother's memory (rte.ie)
  • whatA concerned employee raised the alarm after being personally impacted by the fraudulent behaviour (rte.ie)
  • whatTanner produced fraudulent bank statements with some of his clients to pretend all was well (rte.ie)
  • whatOne man who invested in a scheme Tanner advised him to join was at a loss of over €40,000 (rte.ie)
  • whatA doctor was at a loss of over €43,000 (rte.ie)
  • whatAnother woman lost €5,000 (rte.ie)
  • whatTanner was a separated father of three who at one time ran a business with up to 30 employees (rte.ie)
  • whatHe struggled with the collapse of the Celtic Tiger and was working on his own in Mallow (rte.ie)
  • whatTanner lives a marginal life with only his family home which is let out and has large negative equity (rte.ie)
  • whereThe offences took place at various locations in Co Cork. (irishtimes.com)
  • whenThe offences occurred on various dates between October 1st 2013 and March 16th 2016. (irishtimes.com)
  • whenHe was arrested by gardaí in 2018. (irishtimes.com)
  • whenThe offences occurred on dates from November 2010 to December 2015 (rte.ie)
  • whenTanner was arrested by appointment in December 2018 (rte.ie)
  • investigationDet Garda James O'Reilly of the Garda Economic Crime Investigation Unit at Anglesea Street in Cork presented the evidence. (irishtimes.com)
  • chargeHe pleaded guilty to two counts of theft and five counts of using false documents to obtain money. (irishtimes.com)
  • chargeHe pleaded guilty to several sample counts of fraud and forging documents (rte.ie)
  • courtThe case was heard at Cork Circuit Criminal Court. (irishtimes.com)
  • courtDet Garda James O'Reilly told the court the case involved five injured parties (rte.ie)
  • courtBarrister for the State Ray Boland said the guilty plea was of enormous benefit given the complications of a lengthy trial (rte.ie)
  • sentenceJudge Seán Ó Donnabháin sentenced him to five years in jail. (irishtimes.com)
  • sentenceThe judge said the offending merited a seven-year sentence but applied a two-year discount for the guilty plea. (irishtimes.com)
  • otherTanner had no relevant previous convictions. (irishtimes.com)
  • otherThe judge described the theft and frauds as being at the higher end of the scale due to a huge breach of trust. (irishtimes.com)

The reporting

newest first
  1. 28 Sep2021
    Sentencedrte.ie, its first report
    Financial adviser jailed for five years over fraud

    Provides detailed sentencing information including the judge's reasoning, individual victim losses (€120,000, €40,000, €43,000, €5,000), the victim impact statement, and the full sentence of seven years with two years suspended.

    convicted, Mervyn Tanner, 46, male, named, irish (judged from name)Mervyn Tannervictim, femalevictim, malevictimvictim, female
  2. 28 Sep2021
    Sentencedirishtimes.com, first report
    Former financial advisor who took clients’ funds jailed for five years

    Reports the sentencing of Mervyn Tanner to five years in prison, including details of the fraud against four victims, the judge's reasoning, and the discount applied for his guilty plea.

    convicted, Mervyn Tanner, 46, male, named, irish (judged from name)Mervyn Tannervictim, Laura Murphy, female, irish (judged from name)Laura Murphyvictimvictimvictim