Case No. 0462Misappropriation of company funds · Co. Dublin
Shadow director of liquidated Born Clothing group bought two Thai villas for €1m
John Curley, a man, was the shadow director of the Born Clothing group, which went into liquidation in Dublin with debts of €7.82 million, and nearly €1 million was transferred from the company between April 2022 and November 2024 to purchase two Thai villas in his sole name. In the High Court, joint liquidators sought injunctions restraining Curley from disposing of the properties, and Mr Justice Brian Cregan granted short service of the proceedings, with the application set to return on 12 August 2026. Separately, a man in his 20s, who cannot be named, was found guilty by a jury of one count of sexual assault and coercive control of his wife. Judge Patrick McGrath sentenced him at the Central Criminal Court to three years and six months for coercive control and 15 months for sexual assault, both running concurrently and backdated to 23 April 2026.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In court31 Jul
- Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced31 Jul
2 reports
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- The Born Clothing group, which had 15 shops around the country, went into liquidation with debts of €7.82 million including €2.2 million owed to Revenue.
- Nearly €1 million was transferred from the company between April 2022 and November 2024 for the purchase of two Thai villas in John Curley's sole name.
- In the criminal case, the man threatened to throw acid in his wife's face, said the only way she was leaving him was in a coffin, and used derogatory comments throughout their marriage.
- The man kicked and punched his then-partner before marriage, punched her on the head on their honeymoon, and punched her in the face and stomach during her pregnancy.
- On 17 or 18 March 2022, the man accused his wife of cheating and touched her genital area outside of her clothing.
- Where
- The properties were Villa 3 Ban Shaba and Villa A5, the Breeze Villas, in Thailand.
- When
- The woman separated from her husband in April 2022.
- Investigation
- The woman made a formal complaint to the gardaí in 2023, and the man was arrested, detained and interviewed.
- Charges
- The man was found guilty by unanimous verdicts of one count of sexual assault and coercive control between 1 January 2019 and 15 September 2022.
- In court
- Judge Patrick McGrath passed sentence at the Central Criminal Court, and Mr Justice Brian Cregan granted short service of proceedings seeking injunctions restraining Curley from disposing of the properties, with the application returning on 12 August 2026.
- Sentence
- The man was sentenced to three years and six months for coercive control and 15 months for sexual assault, both running concurrently and backdated to 23 April 2026.
- Other details
- John Curley was previously the life partner of Born's sole director Joan Lynch, had been a Born director for two years and resigned in 2011, and is believed to still be living in Ireland.
- The man in the criminal case has 13 previous convictions and is the subject of an arrest warrant from the UK.
40 statements extracted from the articles
- whatThe man threatened he would throw acid in her face. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe man said the only way she was leaving him was in a coffin. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- whatBefore marriage, the defendant kicked and punched his then partner. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- whatOn their honeymoon, the woman woke to find her husband on top of her, punching her on the side of the head. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- whatDuring her pregnancy, the woman was punched on both the face and in the stomach. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- whatOn 17 March 2022, the man accused her of cheating and touched her genital area outside of her clothing. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe man threatened to throw acid in his wife's face. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe following evening the man accused her of cheating and touched her genital area outside of her clothing. (irishmirror.ie)
- whereThe properties were Villa 3 Ban Shaba and Villa A5, the Breeze Villas (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe woman separated from her husband in April 2022. (irishtimes.com)
- whenOn 17 March 2022, the woman went out with her friends. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenIn April 2022, the woman separated from her husband. (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationThe woman made a formal complaint to the gardaí in 2023. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- investigationThe man was arrested, detained and interviewed. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeThe man was found guilty of one count of sexual assault on 18 March 2022. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- chargeThe man was found guilty of coercive control between 1 January 2019 and 15 September 2022. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- courtJudge Patrick McGrath passed sentence on Friday. (irishtimes.com)
- courtMr Justice Brian Cregan granted short service of proceedings seeking injunctions restraining Mr Curley from disposing of the properties (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe application comes back to a vacation sitting of the court on August 12 (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe judge set a headline sentence of four years for coercive control. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe judge set a headline sentence of 18 months for sexual assault. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe man was sentenced to three years and six months for coercive control. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe man was sentenced to 15 months for sexual assault. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceBoth sentences are to run concurrently and were backdated to 23 April 2026. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceBoth sentences run concurrently and were backdated to 23 April 2026. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe man has 13 previous convictions. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe man is the subject of an arrest warrant from the UK. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe man was convicted by unanimous verdicts. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe couple had known each other since they were teenagers. (irishtimes.com, irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe Born Clothing group went into liquidation with debts of €7.82 million including €2.2 million owed to Revenue (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe Born Clothing group had 15 shops around the country (irishmirror.ie)
- otherJohn Curley was previously life partner of Born's sole director Joan Lynch (irishmirror.ie)
- otherNearly €1 million was transferred from the company between April 2022 and November 2024 for the purchase of Thai properties (irishmirror.ie)
- otherOne villa is believed to have been let out for €3,505 per month (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMr Curley claimed he was an employee of Elland Distributors Ltd on a salary of €24,000 (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMr Curley had a €110,000 BMW 7 company car which was four times his alleged salary (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMr Curley had been a Born director for two years and resigned in 2011 (irishmirror.ie)
- otherForeigners are prohibited from owning land in Thailand but may acquire a 30-year lease (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMr Curley is believed to still be living in Ireland (irishmirror.ie)
- otherJoan Lynch told the liquidators she had no knowledge of the alleged co-investment arrangement (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 31 Jul2026Shadow director of liquidated Irish clothing group bought 2 Thai villas for €1m
Reports on High Court proceedings where liquidators of the Born Clothing group sought injunctions against shadow director John Curley over nearly €1m in company funds used to purchase two Thai villas, with Mr Justice Brian Cregan granting short service of the application.
accused, John Curley, male, named, irish (judged from name)John Curley - 31 Jul2026Man, 20s, told pregnant wife he didn't care if 'baby was dead' during attack
Sentencing details including judge's remarks, victim impact statement, and defence submissions. The man has 13 previous convictions and is subject of a UK arrest warrant.
victim, femaleconvicted, 20s, male - 31 Jul2026Husband jailed for three and a half years for sexual assault and coercive control of wife
Reports the sentencing by Judge Patrick McGrath, including details of the abuse (derogatory comments, threats of acid, physical violence during pregnancy), the victim's impact statement, the judge's reasoning on the upper range of the coercive control scale, and the concurrent sentences backdated to 23 April 2026.
victim, femaleconvicted, 20s, male