IRELAND’S former richest man, Sean Quinn, has hit out at the former Anglo Irish Bank.

 

The former billionaire was speaking to Pat Kenny on Newstalk.

He criticised the former Anglo Irish Bank for seizing Quinn business assets, and then using money generated from them to take the family though the courts.

“These are our assets, these assets never belonged to them, they didn’t finance those. It’s our money.

“You have a lot of pride when you put something together over a long period of time. We would like them back, but if not then compensation.

"It's an absolute total disaster.

“These guys have been using our money to beat us up and put us in prison and make us the most hated family in the country.”

Mr Quinn also denied having knowledge on who was carrying out the attacks on his former assets in the Cavan area.

“No I don’t know who’s doing it. I put 40 years building them up, the last thing I want to do is see the assets I created destroyed.”

However he suggested that because the only properties being attacked are those with security men hired by Anglo, it could be a protest attack against them.

“In whose interest is these attacks? The only assets which are being touched are the ones where the security are.

"The anger in the area is very bad in the past few weeks.

“People in the region feel the Quinn family have a good reputation.”

He also spoke on the recent acquittal of former Anglo Irish Bank chairman Sean Fitzpatrick.

“I wasn’t overly surprised, they brought specific cases against him they couldn’t prove it.

“I don’t think there was any big surprise.

“Why send three men to prison if there are 20 or 30 people just as complicit? I don’t see any reason why they should go to prison.”