Cork man convicted of defrauding Munster businesses over fire extinguisher sales
Trevor O’Brien, 50, of Knocks, Lyre, Clonakilty, Co Cork, was charged with one count of theft and two counts of making gain or causing loss by deception relating to three separate incidents. File picture: Denis Minihane
A man who deceived and stole from farmers and rural businesses on the pretext of selling fire safety equipment has been sent to prison.
Trevor O’Brien, 50, of Knocks, Lyre, Clonakilty, Co Cork, appeared before Judge Fiona Brennan at Macroom District Court where he faced three charges under the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act, 2001.
O’Brien was charged with one count of theft and two counts of making gain or causing loss by deception relating to three separate incidents. Inspector Anthony Harrington said the alleged incidents all followed a similar pattern of goods being promised and not delivered and excessive prices being charged.
Giving evidence, 79-year-old farmer Patrick Finn from Kilcummin near Killarney, Co Kerry, told the court that Trevor O’Brien arrived unannounced at his farm on November, 17, 2023, asking if he wanted to buy fire extinguishers and smoke alarms.
Mr Finn said he had been anxious to change some of his old fire extinguishers and he agreed to buy three fire extinguishers from Mr O’Brien, as well as four new smoke alarms and one carbon monoxide alarm for his house.
Mr Finn said he agreed to purchase the goods for €1,487 and paid O’Brien by debit card via a Sum Up portable card reader O’Brien had with him. Mr Finn said he then rang his son and told him about the purchase and his son told him he had been overcharged.
Mr Finn said he only received one fire extinguisher from O’Brien and the smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarm were never delivered. He said he had repeatedly tried to contact O’Brien and had told him he wanted his money back but O’Brien did not refund the money.
Sean Kelleher, a farmer from Lissacresig, Macroom, Co Cork, told the court Trevor O’Brien called to his farmyard on October 11, 2023, offering to sell fire safety equipment. Mr Kelleher said he asked O’Brien for a cost estimate for three fire extinguishers, two smoke alarms and two carbon monoxide alarms.
He said he did not agree a price with O’Brien but he did provide him with his card details. He said he had forgotten about it until close to Christmas when three fire extinguishers were delivered to the farm while he was on his honeymoon and he discovered €730 had been taken from his account without his consent.
Mr Kelleher said no smoke alarms were delivered and he tried repeatedly to contact O’Brien to get his money back and return the goods.
Shopkeeper Denis White of the Bridge Shop, Toonsbrigde, Macroom, told the court Trevor O’Brien arrived at his shop just before noon on May 27, 2024. He said O’Brien showed him an identification badge and claimed to be from the company that had installed his fire alarm and extinguishers.
Mr White said O’Brien claimed he was checking the fire safety equipment and held an extinguisher next to his ear and shook it.
He told Mr White three of his fire extinguishers needed replacing and took them away, leaving three new ones at the shop. He also said he would provide two new smoke alarms and two new carbon monoxide alarms but they were never delivered. Mr White said he had paid €425 by card for the goods.
The court heard evidence from two experts in the fire safety field, Tony Corcoran and Robert Thompson. Both gave evidence the prices being charged by O’Brien were significantly above the norm and in some cases more than double what would be expected.
They said prices for fire extinguishers varied by type from about €40 to €95, while smoke and carbon monoxide alarms would typically cost less than €50.
Mr Thompson said it would be very unusual for a reputable company not to provide the goods at the time of payment.
Trevor O’Brien told the court he had been in the fire safety business for 32 years. He said he charged €160 for a fire extinguisher, €90 for a smoke alarm and €89 for a carbon monoxide alarm. He said nobody was forced to buy from him and his prices may be higher because he did not deal in large quantities like some of the bigger providers in the market.
He claimed in all three cases he was unable to contact the customers to install the smoke alarms and would only do so while they were present. He claimed he had delivered four extinguishers to Mr Finn on the day he called and Mr Kelleher had agreed a price with him. He said he had called to Mr White’s shop to install the smoke alarms but left when he saw he was not behind the counter.
Insp Harrington put it to O’Brien he never had any intention of delivering any of the smoke alarms and said in the case of Mr Finn he had targeted an elderly farmer.
He said O’Brien had made no effort to refund any of the injured parties. The court heard O’Brien was convicted of theft in Waterford District Court on November 26, 2024, where he was given a six-month suspended sentence.
Judge Brennan said O’Brien’s evidence was self-serving and contradictory. She said she was satisfied all of the other witnesses were honest and trustworthy and she commended the gardái for the investigation that had resulted in the prosecution.
For the deception involving Mr Finn, Trevor O’Brien was convicted and sentenced to four months in prison. For the theft charge relating to Mr Kelleher he was convicted and sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years.
For the deception relating to Mr White he was convicted and sentenced to three months in prison, suspended for two years, to run consecutively. Recognisance in the event of an appeal was fixed in his own bond of €600 cash.
