A property letting agent is alleged to have rented out rooms in 17 Dublin properties to between 50 and 80 migrants and international students, dividing some living rooms into makeshift bedrooms and without providing written tenancy agreements, the High Court has heard, reports Breaking News.
Kevin O’Brien, also known as Kevin Linehan O’Brien, with an address in Drogheda, Co Louth, along with his company Linehan O’Brien Investments Ltd, is claimed to have made these arrangements without the consent or knowledge of the property owners or their appointed agent.
The affected houses and apartments, located in areas such as Portobello, East Wall, Capel Street, and Ranelagh, had been leased via QTX Services Ltd to Mr O’Brien/Linehan or his company on behalf of the properties’ corporate owners — Blumay Ltd, Sunchulo Ltd, Maroon Zirconium Ltd, and Harts Alexandra Ltd, reports Breaking News.
On Thursday, Mr Justice David Nolan granted permission to the property owners to serve court papers on the defendants in a case seeking to stop alleged trespassing by Mr O’Brien and his company. The application was made on an ex parte basis (without notice to the other side) by Brian Conroy SC, representing the property owners.
The owners are seeking injunctions to prevent the defendants from trespassing, falsely presenting themselves as property managers, and obstructing the owners’ efforts to regain possession of the properties through their agent, reports Breaking News.
In an affidavit, Padraig Kehoe, director of QTX Services (the agency originally hired to manage the properties), stated that the notices to quit served on the defendants are not aimed at displacing the current occupants. Instead, the intention is to “respect, regularise and safeguard” the tenants’ positions.
Mr Kehoe explained that in 2021, Mr Linehan O’Brien had offered to manage and sub-let one property — an arrangement initially agreed with a QTX employee. Similar agreements were then extended to 16 other properties. These deals went unnoticed by senior management at QTX until the employee who had handled them left the company, reports Breaking News.
In February, QTX carried out inspections of all 17 properties, uncovering a range of issues including structural changes to living spaces, overcrowding, poor upkeep, and a lack of formal tenancy agreements for the occupants.
According to Mr Kehoe, the defendants’ business model involved leasing the properties and then offering individual licences or room sub-leases — often shared — to multiple occupants. Their income came from the difference between the rent paid to the property owners and what they collected from individual tenants, reports Breaking News.
He said notices to quit had been served on Mr O’Brien and his company. In response, the defendants lodged complaints with the Gardaí, the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA), and attempted to bring the matter to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), despite not being legal tenants themselves.
Mr O’Brien has argued that the actions of QTX were unlawful and insisted that the matter should be dealt with by the RTB. He has also accused QTX agents of trespassing and harassment — claims Mr Kehoe strongly denies.
The case is scheduled to return to court next week, reports Breaking News.
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