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Former hurling star DJ Carey has been sentenced to five and a half years in prison after a “reprehensible” act of fraud where he exploited the goodwill of friends, family and fans of thousands of euro to treat cancer he did not have.
The ex-Kilkenny hurler, 54, pleaded guilty in July to 10 counts of inducing people to give him money after fraudulently claiming to have cancer.
A further eight counts were taken into consideration for sentencing at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin on Monday.
Judge Martin Nolan said that fraudsters tend to appeal to the weakness of humans, which is usually greed.
“This is not the case here, Mr Carey exploited the good nature of people,” the judge said.
Describing Carey as a “formidable sportsman in both hurling and handball, one of the best known hurlers ever and known across the hurling world”, the judge said the people who gave him money were “good-natured people who wanted to help a person in need”.
He said that it was “very hard to know what motivated Mr Carey” but since entering his guilty pleas he had been subjected to “public odium and ridicule” and that his “good name will probably never recover”.
He said that when he is released he is likely to face a tough life.
He said among the aspects taken into consideration in mitigation was that he has no previous record of convictions, he has a history of work and and of contributing to society.
“Do I think he will offend in the future? Probably not,” he said before adding that no court could be certain.
Carey stood expressionless in the courtroom with his hands clasped in front of him, wearing the same clothes as he was on Friday when he was taken into custody.
Carey was one of the most acclaimed figures in GAA history, having won five All-Ireland titles and nine All-Star awards.
When he retired from inter-county hurling in 2006, he was hailed as an “idol” for young players and a legend of the game.
Billionaire Denis O’Brien is among the people the former sportsman induced to pay him money by fraudulently claiming he needed to fund cancer treatment.
In total Carey was given 394,127 euro and 13,000 dollars, of which he repaid 44,203 euro.
