Gran locked up with nation's most dangerous prisoners after claiming dead relative's pension for 28 years

This gran has been locked up with some of Ireland’s most dangerous women prisoners - after she was jailed for a massive pension scam.

Margaret Bergin is expected to serve the two year sentence handed down to her yesterday for the €271,000 scam in the Dochas women’s prison in Dublin - home to female killers and serious criminals. The 73-year-old was jailed by a judge at Portlaoise Circuit Criminal Court after she admitted falsely claiming her dead father-in-law’s pension for more than 28 years.

Judge Keenan Johnson locked her up for five and a half years - but the final three and a half years were suspended. That leaves a two year sentence - but with standard remission she will serve just 18 months. And sources said it was possible she could get enhanced remission - which would mean she would serve 16 months and will be free by March 2026.

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But in the meantime, she is set to share Dochas with almost 150 other women - including killers. Other inmates in the central Dublin prison include Regina Keogh, 47, serving life for the Kinahan cartel murder in May 2016 of Gareth Hutch as part of the feud that left 18 men dead. Another prisoner is Paula Farrell, 51, serving life for the knife murder of Wayne McQuillan at her home at Rathmullen Park, Drogheda , Co Louth on New Year’s Day in 2014. And Dochas is also home to Sabrina Cummins, 44, of Ringsend Park, Dublin 4 serving life for murdering Thomas Horan at his home in the same area of the capital, also in January 2014.

Mrs Bergin will serve her jail time in one of eight units called houses inside the Dochas complex - and share it with as many as seven other inmates. She will have an en-suite room and own a key to it - which means she can move freely within a certain area during the day. But the houses will be locked down at 7.30pm. Each house also has its own sitting room with a TV and books.

Mrs Bergin, with an address at Fairfield House in Mountrath in Co Laois, was jailed at Portlaoise court today after pleading guilty to 15 charges in relation to the 28-year scam. The grandmother had pleaded guilty to 10 counts of theft and five of larceny connected to her fraudulently claiming the State pension of her in law John Bergin - who died in 1993 at the age of 82.

Mrs Bergin swiped €271,046.28 from December 1993 to February 2022 - when her crimes were eventually uncovered.. The court heard previously from Detective Garda Peter Crosbie that an investigation into the fraud was started after an amateur gerontologist contacted Áras an Uachtaráin in March 2022 to enquire about records which indicated a 110-year-old man was living in Mountrath.

The researcher, who was suspicious of the individual’s details, believed the claimant’s birth date of July 2, 1911 would have made him Ireland’s oldest man. The court heard officials from Áras an Uachtaráin subsequently contacted the Department of Social Protection (DSP) whose officials uncovered the fraud after visiting Bergin’s home in Mountrath.

Det Garda Crosbie said several attempts were made by DSP officials to arrange a visit to the centenarian at home to confirm he was alive but were cancelled by the accused due to various excuses, including that her father-in-law was unwell. He told the court that the DSP had also been unable to find any record of Mr Bergin’s death, while the local parish priest had been unable to provide any information about the deceased.

The court heard that when asked if Mr Bergin was visited by a district nurse, Mrs Bergin had claimed there was no need for one as she was a nurse and could provide any assistance he required. Det Garda Crosbie said DSP officials ultimately decided to just call out to the Bergin family home as they believed there were “deliberate attempts” to dissuade them from carrying out their investigation.

He said when they arrived at the house they were asked not to disturb Mr Bergin and were left waiting at the hall door before being brought into a bedroom.

The court heard the DSP officials were introduced to a man in a bed as Mr Bergin whom they were informed was “deaf and confused.” However, Det Garda Crosbie said they were unconvinced that the individual was Mr Bergin as he looked much younger and bore no resemblance to a photo they had of the pensioner. The witness said the person in the bed also seemed to be fully clothed and wearing shoes or boots under the bed clothes, while there were no medical aids in the room that one would expect for such an elderly person.

Det Garda Crosbie said he subsequently discovered Mr Bergin’s burial place at a graveyard in Clonad, Co Laois while a local undertaker had also confirmed that the accused’s father-in-law had died in November 1993 aged 82. The detective gave evidence that he discovered silver coins given every year by Áras an Uachtaráin to people who have reached 100 years during a search of Mrs Bergin’s home on May 10, 2022. He said Mrs Bergin claimed she did not know what he was talking about when he had asked her about getting such coins from the President.

The search also found an uncashed cheque for €2,540 from the President on the occasion of Mr Bergin’s 100th birthday as well as receipts from An Post for his pension and mass cards sent to the family at the time of his funeral.

The court heard a review of DSP records found Mr Bergin’s pension had been claimed for 28 and a half years after his death, while his daughter-in-law had also signed various forms in his name.

Det Garda Crosbie said Mrs Bergin failed to show up at an appointed time to be interviewed by gardaí on July 22, 2022. He recounted how she arrived in the garda station an hour later just after he had received a message from her solicitor that she was unwell and needed time to undergo some medical tests.

The detective said dealing at that stage with the accused was “very frustrating” and he took the decision to arrest Mrs Bergin in September 2022 after hearing nothing further from her. When questioned he said Mrs Bergin was fully co-operative and accepted she had signed various documents.

She admitted to gardaí that it was her husband, Séamus, who was in the bed when DSP officials called to her house, although she had told them he was away at a market in Tipperary.

In June, Mrs Bergin paid €35,000 in compensation but Judge Keenan Johnson said then the figure was not enough - and he adjourned the case to allow for a proper amount to be raised. And on Wednesday, defence counsel Damien Colgan told the court his client was providing an extra €40,000. Mr Colgan told the judge there was no more money available - and he said the best the defendant could do is pay €50 a week from her pension. On the same day, the court heard a letter of apology from Mrs Bergin - and that she was sorry for committing the offences.

In the letter, read out by Mr Colgan, Mrs Bergin - who was authorised to withdraw the pension for her father in law when he was alive - said she made the huge mistake of carrying on collecting it after he died but she said she felt trapped. She said was ashamed and embarrassed by her actions and she pleaded to the judge to "show me as much mercy as you can".

The court heard Mrs Bergin is in poor health and has become socially isolated and estranged from one of her children and her brother because of her offences. But yesterday Judge Johnson said the case was "quite extraordinary" and "an extremely serious case of theft and fraud, resulting in a large loss to the State."

He said Mrs Bergin’s actions were clearly premeditated, because the death of her father in law was never registered. Judge Johnson said there was a "repetitive, deliberate and conscious efforts by the accused to defraud the State" and he said it added to her "culpability and the gravity of the offending."

"Every single year that the fraud went on, the accused actively perpetuated the fraud by forging the signature of the deceased," the judge said.

He also said Mrs Bergin’s actions were an attack on the fundamental values of integrity and honesty which the Department relies on to administer social welfare as fairly as possible.

Judge Johnson said the mitigating factors included Mrs Bergin’s guilty plea and cooperation in the later stages of the investigation, as well as her letter of apology to the court, and medical and probation reports. The judge said he found it hard to believe that the accused acted independently- particularly as her husband Seamus had impersonated his late father in order to deceive the social welfare inspectors.

He said: "I cannot believe that correspondence, which have been received at least annually in the name of John Bergin, could not have been seen by other members of the household, particularly the correspondence and centenarian coins from Áras an Uachtaráin, which would have been unique and noticeable.

"I cannot help but feel, despite her assertions to the contrary, that Mrs Bergin has allowed herself to be offered as a sacrificial lamb for the offending and the full responsibility does not rest exclusively with her.”

He also said according to submissions made by the defence, the stolen funds had been used for shopping and food and by extension for the benefit of the family, and added that "the family should be assisting the accused to make full reimbursement."

The judge said he fails to understand why a portion of the family farm of 99 acres could not be sold, or mortgaged to finance the reimbursement.

However, he said the payment of €75,000 attracted some mitigation but "not as substantial as it might otherwise have been." Judge Johnson said with great regret he felt duty bound to jail Mrs Bergin.

He said: "Some people may feel that the sentence is too lenient and others may feel that it's too harsh, however, I have tried to impose a sentence that is fair and equitable and which sends out a clear message that no matter who you are or what your circumstances are, theft from the social welfare fund is such a serious offence because of the damage it does to society, that a custodial sentence, particularly where the theft is prolonged and significant as is the case here will be unavoidable."

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