Man who deceived young Louth widow into giving him €140k has been jailed
Drogheda Circuit Court
A 32-year-old man who defrauded a local woman of €142,000 after meeting her at her husband's wake has been jailed for five years at Drogheda Circuit Court.
Peter McDonagh of Melville Way, Finglas, Dublin 11 and also with an address at Reask Court, Navan, Co. Meath was originally charged with 55 counts of dishonestly by deception, inducing the woman to transfer various amounts to him between January 25th and October 21st 2024 at a location within the State and pleaded guilty to nine sample charges.
The court was told on Thursday that the victim's husband died by suicide in September 2023 and she had met the defendant for the first time at his wake, as Peter McDonagh had known him through work.
The next month out of the blue she received a message from him on Facebook looking for her mobile number as he claimed her husband had asked him to do a favour.
After that he was in touch on a daily basis and by December, he was telling her they were in a relationship and he would be with her forever. He claimed he was an orphan and "had nobody else" - and would be dead 'only for her'.
Judge Sinead McMullan heard that the injured party had received a life assurance payment following her husband's death.
The first payment she made to Peter McDonagh was in January 2024, when he asked her to transfer €2,000 so he could have a car to sleep in.
Just over two weeks later he said he was in Maghaberry prison and needed €2,000 for bail and money for clothes and to get back to Dublin.
He claimed to have Stage 4 cancer and sought payments for treatment in England and for "paying for his sister's funeral" and to buy clothes to wear to it.
He asked on another occasion for €2,000 "for the reconstruction of his father's grave". He also asked her to send him €1,500 on her birthday for a Gucci bag she want which she never received.
The same month (February) the defendant looked for €1,500 - as he claimed to be living on the streets in England and needed money for hotels.
He claimed he had no I.D at the time and couldn't return to Ireland as a result.
On another occasion McDonagh asked for almost €5,000 - again under the guise of buying a car to sleep in. He had told his victim that she would be repaid from the settlement of a claim.
The court further heard that on occasion when she questioned the payments he told her "If you don't accept it - I'll do what I have to do" and having been widowed 'that way' she was particularly vulnerable to the threat of self-harm.
After the victim found out he was married with children, the defendant told her he was single after an acrimonious split and he also convinced the woman to send further sums by claiming he would be killed by dangerous people he owed money too and that she and her daughter would also be at risk. On foot of that, he was sent €29,000 over the next couple of weeks to keep them 'safe'.
However, Peter McDonagh's wife met the woman in person at Dublin Airport and showed how they had been on family holidays in Salou, Barcelona, Lourdes, Knock, Manchester, Blackpool and Alton Towers. He had also bought a new car with some of the money.
The woman reported the deception to gardaí in Dundalk on November 14th 2024 and they obtained records in relation to bank and Revolut accounts.
Gardai established the defendant had booked a one way flight from Dublin on February 27th 2025 and he was arrested in the Departures area of Terminal 2.
During his garda interviews Peter McDonagh initially said he was still in love with the woman and was willing to pay her back but claimed that his wife had prevented him.
He also blamed the woman's husband for a drug debt of €100,000 and "then he went and killed himself".
The defendant said the woman knew where the money was going (gambling) and he denied using her for money or getting money under false pretences and said "It's her own fault".
The defendant also claimed if the woman "thought for a second I was divorced - she'd be living with me".
The court heard he had 42 previous convictions including 13 for theft and one count of deception.
His lawyer said the married father of three had difficulties with gambling and had amassed debts as a result and the investigating garda who was then based at Dundalk Garda Station said that over €20,000 was spent on gambling.
The barrister outlined how his client grew up in care and had had a promising boxing career having boxed for Drogheda ABC and one at Leinster championship level, but that came to an ended after he suffered a skull fracture at the age of 17.
A number of testimonials were handed into the court on behalf of the accused but Judge McMullan said it was unclear if the people who said he is "a man of good character" were aware of his previous convictions and the extent of this offending.
In her victim impact statement, the woman said she met the defendant at the most vulnerable and traumatic time of her life and the €142,000 was meant to provide a safe home and stability for herself and her daughter.
She said she had only had one partner previously (her husband) and the accused had manipulated, deceived and pressured her with 'sustained and calculated, coercive control'.
The woman said "I was told it was life or death and that only I could save him" and she criticised this emotional manipulation in the context of her husband's death..
She added she believed it was a genuine relationship and when it ended the defendant had repeatedly made contact with her and blocked him on multiple numbers.
The woman stressed "At no point has he shown any remorse" and she believed "it was a deliberate and cruel scheme from the beginning".
She outlined how she has been unable to work due to stress and lives in a constant state of stress and hyperawareness. She has deleted all her social media accounts and installed CCTV cameras at her home.
The woman stressed that the money taken "was everything I had" and that her trust in people has been completely destroyed
Judge McMullan said "obviously this very serious" and she would need time to consider the matter overnight.
On Friday morning at the resumed sentencing hearing the judge said it was clear to see the harm caused to a young widow - she was deceived of €142,000 and contact had been made when she was particularly vulnerable.
She said the woman was targeted in a despicable and sinister manner and apart from an early guilty plea there is little other evidence of remorse.
Judge McMullan imposed a sentence of five years and three months, with the final three months suspended backdated to December sixth last.
The court also directed that Peter McDonagh has no contact with the injured party, her daughter and her immediate family.