A man who posed as a so-called ghost insurance broker and obtained €12,500 in fake policy payments from unsuspecting people in his community has been jailed for two years and ordered to sell his motorbike.

Cesar Fernandes Borges Filho’s victims “trusted him because he was one of their own”, Judge Martin Nolan said as he sentenced him at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. this tuesday

The court interviewed Filho, who has an address County Waterfordit targeted people from the Brazilian community who had recently arrived in the country and were unfamiliar with the Irish insurance policy system.

The 34-year-old, who has an address in Ballymacaw, Dunmore East, pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud relating to dishonestly getting someone to take out a purported car insurance policy at an undisclosed location in the state , for dates from 2019 and 2020. .

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Sergeant Gavin Coleman told Breffni Gordon BL, prosecuting, that Filho picked numbers at random when telling people how much the policy would cost, with amounts ranging from €900 to €2,480.

He took a total of approximately €12,500 from his victims, who were under the impression that they had purchased car insurance policies that were not in fact valid. Transactions were mostly carried out via WhatsApp and Filho gained customers through word of mouth in the Brazilian community, the court heard.

Only one victim in the case handed in a victim impact statement, which was not read aloud during the court hearing.

Sgt Coleman told the court most victims were reluctant to engage with the police and the criminal justice system and many had to be convinced they were out of trouble.

The court heard the victims were in the country on legitimate visas and had little means. Sgt Coleman said they wanted him to convey to the court that the losses they had suffered as a result of Filho’s actions were significant to them.

The court heard that Filho’s actions came to light when a red flag was raised after his email address appeared in duplicate on an insurance company’s online system.

When interviewed by the police, he admitted. He has a previous conviction for similar fraud matters as well as road offences.

The court noted that, after the search of his residence, a motorcycle worth 10,000 euros belonging to Filho was seized. The defense lawyer requested the bike be returned, the court heard.

Apology letters from Filho and his wife were submitted to the mitigation court.

He is originally from Brazil but has lived in Ireland since he was a teenager. The court heard he was unable to repay any money to his victims as he had recently moved house and had to pay a deposit. He is the father of a newborn.

Sentencing Filho, Judge Nolan said he took advantage of a situation and left a number of trusted people at a loss. He noted there was excellent mitigation — particularly Filho’s cooperation with police and his guilty pleas. The judge said he was unlikely to reoffend.

He imposed a three-year prison sentence, but suspended the final year on a number of conditions, including that Filho’s motorcycle be sold and the proceeds shared among his victims.