Former GAA star DJ Carey has been told by a judge to expect a custodial sentence, after defrauding friends, family and fans of more than 394,000 euro to treat a cancer he never had.
The ex-Kilkenny hurler, 54, was remanded in custody on Friday after a sentencing hearing at Dublin Criminal Courts of Justice and will return to court to hear his sentence on Monday.
He pleaded guilty in July to 10 counts of inducing people to give him money after fraudulently claiming to have cancer.
The court also heard details of another eight cases which were to be taken into consideration for sentencing.
In total Carey was given 394,127 euro and 13,000 dollars, of which, he repaid 44,203 euros.
Prosecuting counsel Dominic McGinn told the court the former player carried out a âseries of deceptionsâ as he outlined the details of each count against Carey.
The court heard how gardai were first alerted to Careyâs crimes by a financial institution, when one of their customers who was âgetting on in yearsâ tried to transfer money to him.
Carey told his victims he needed treatment in Seattle, in the US, for cancer, telling several that his status as an âelite athleteâ meant he would receive some free treatment but needed help with travel, additional treatment and living costs.
Among those he defrauded was billionaire businessman Denis OâBrien who gave him 125,182 euro and 13,000 dollars, none of which has been repaid.
He also provided use of a house and a car for a period of time.
The court heard they first met on a golf trip to South Africa in 1997 and often played together when Carey was living on the Mount Juliet Estate, where Mr OâBrien also had a house.
Carey had told him he owed the bank AIB âa substantial amount of moneyâ, and asked for help with cancer treatment.
When Mr OâBrienâs accountant, Ann Foley, asked for a medical letter, he provided two, which appeared to be from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre in Seattle.
When gardai contacted the centre they said they had no record of him ever being treated there.
In a victim impact statement read to the court Mr OâBrien said: âTo my embarrassment I was completely duped by DJ Carey.â
He said for someone âto claim they have cancer is unconscionableâ, describing Carey as âextraordinarily deceitful, manipulative and cunningâ who âcame back time and time again over a long number of yearsâ.
Carey also received 120,000 euro from Tom Brennan, a consultant involved in the development of oncology drugs.
Both men had attended St Kieranâs College in Kilkenny at different times.
Mr Brennan agreed to lend the money and the pair signed a repayment plan but when Carey failed to repay the sum, Mr Brennan challenged him about his illness and his travel to Seattle.
He then took a civil claim against Carey, which he won, although the money has not yet been repaid.
Carey told a number of his victims he would pay them back from compensation of more than a million euro he was due to receive from the Health Service Executive (HSE), telling one person he had an âexcessive dose of radiationâ during his treatment at St Jamesâ Hospital in Dublin.
Detective Sergeant Michael Bourke confirmed to the court that when gardai investigated they found âno record of any claim made by Mr Careyâ.
Carey told another victim he was suffering from the same type of cancer, multiple myeloma, as his wife.
On December 14 2022 gardai obtained search warrants in relation to Mr Careyâs hotel room and car.
They court heard when they knocked at his room at the Hoban Hotel in Kilkenny Mr Carey handed over his car keys, phone and Pin number.
His phone was examined and a âlarge quantity of dataâ was recovered including text messages with victims referring to his cancer and his treatment in Seattle along with messages containing excuses as to why the money wasnât repaid.
In mitigation, defence counsel Colman Cody said Careyâs guilty plea prevented a âlengthy and complexâ trial taking place.
He also said Carey had suffered a âstunning fall from graceâ and was now âsomething of a pariahâ.
He added he was the subject of âsome humiliation and ridiculeâ including images circulated online of Mr Carey in a hospital bed âhooked up to a mobile phoneâ cable describing them as âcompletely fake and falseâ that did not emanate from the investigation.
He described how Carey lived a âtransient lifeâ after his house was repossessed and his relationship broke down describing him as âeffectively of no fixed abodeâ and sometimes living in his car.
He also said Carey wanted to âoffer heartfelt and sincere apologyâ to his victims and that he suffered from a chronic heart condition that requires ongoing treatment.
Judge Martin Nolan said all of the injured parties should be âcomplimentedâ, adding âthey may feel foolishâ but were âgenuinely good people who responded to Carey âin a very generous way in his hour of needâ.
One of those who was in court to deliver a victim impact statement was Thomas Butler, who gave Carey more than 16,000 euro.
He described it as âgut-wrenchingâ that Carey had used cancer to obtain the money because both his parents had died of the disease.
He also added he had suffered âdistress and mental tormentâ because Careyâs trial had been due to take place over the period his daughter was getting married.
There was a large media presence inside and outside the court where Carey, who wore a purple blazer, blue shirt and multicolour tie, sat expressionless throughout the hearing.
