DUBLIN — A 35-year-old woman has been sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to a series of theft and fraud charges, including the elaborate plot to fake her own death to avoid trial.
Amy McAuley, of Connagh, Co. Wexford, stole a total of over €70,000 and nine mobile phones through offences spanning from 2018 to 2023. Judge Orla Crowe sentenced McAuley to four years, suspending the final year.
The Death Hoax and Fraudulent Claims
The most “egregious” of the offences, as described by the judge, involved McAuley submitting a false death notification form to Wexford County Council in January 2023. Death certificates were subsequently issued in her name in both English and Irish, leading to the postponement of her trial for theft.
The elaborate deception included posting three separate death notices on RIP.ie, claiming she had died in France and Belfast, and even listing a fictional funeral director. One notice was eventually removed after her mother confirmed she was not deceased.
McAuley also attempted to claim a €96,000 death in service benefit from a former employer in Northern Ireland by calling them as “Winnie,” her supposed sister. The company paid €9,000 into her account as a goodwill gesture, which was never repaid.
Pattern of Theft and Deception
McAuley pleaded guilty to multiple charges including:
- Perverting the course of justice (for the death hoax and providing forged medical certificates).
- Theft (including securing a €10,000 loan from KBC bank in 2018 using forged documents, which was never repaid).
- Theft of nine mobile phones from Three Ireland.
This is not McAuley’s first conviction; she previously received a suspended sentence in 2015 for stealing nearly €111,000 from a former employer, of which only €30,000 was repaid. She also transferred approximately €49,100 to her account when working as an assistant accountant at another company in 2015.
Defence counsel stated that McAuley had acted alone and was living a “crazy, chaotic existence,” which has since stabilized. When questioned by Gardaí, she admitted wrongdoing, stating she could not face going to court and believed “everything would be okay if she was dead” so she could be with her young child.
Judge Crowe noted the offences involved “planning over a protracted period of time and a significant amount of money” before delivering the sentence.
