Former rugby international on trial over stealing from BOI

A former Irish rugby international has gone on trial charged with stealing over €500,000 from Bank of Ireland Private Banking.

Brendan Mullin, with an address on Stillorgan Road in Donnybrook in Dublin 4, is also facing 14 other charges.

The 60-year-old has pleaded not guilty to the 15 charges against him.

His trial, before a jury of nine men and three women, opened this afternoon at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Mr Mullin has pleaded not guilty to one count of stealing €500,000 from Bank of Ireland Private Bank on Mespil Road in Dublin 4 on 16 December 2011 along with eight other counts of stealing various amounts of money from the bank on different dates.

He has also pleaded not guilty to five counts of false accounting through the furnishing information to the bank authorising payment of invoices while knowing or believing them to be false, misleading or deceptive and not guilty to one count of deception.

The charges are all alleged to have taken place at Bank of Ireland Private Bank on Mespil Road on dates between July 2011 and March 2013.

Mr Mullin, who worked as a Managing Director for Bank of Ireland Private Banking between January 2011 and July 2013, is a former rugby international who played for Ireland.

A new jury was empanelled this morning after 12 jury members selected last week were discharged yesterday as the trial was due to open.

The decision was taken after one of the jurors said they had found out over the weekend that they know a relative of Mr Mullin.

The trial, before Judge Martin Nolan, is expected to last four weeks.

Opening the trial this afternoon, prosecuting barrister Dominic McGinn said the 15 charges against Mr Mullin relate to the period between 2011 and 2013 when he was the Managing Director of Bank