Stuart Pearson (businessman)

He was born in Arklow where his family lived in Templerainey[4] and owned a Burmah petrol station.[5] By 1998 they moved to Carlow where he claimed to own 'The Foundry' nightclub.[5] (In fact, The Foundry is part of the Dinn Rí Hotel complex[6] owned by the McLoughlin family.[7]) Pearson qualified as an accountant in Portlaoise c.2008.[4] He moved with his wife and two daughters to County Kilkenny,[8] where he rented a house in Goresbridge[9] and worked in a convenience store in Graiguenamanagh.[8][9] He was attacked in a robbery on the shop in January 2008.[10][11] In May 2009, The Irish Times reported that he had separated from his wife, who claimed to have no knowledge of his business dealings; and that locals in Goresbridge were surprised by and sceptical of the reports of Pearson's extreme claim of wealth.[9] The Irish Daily Mail had expressed similar scepticism in December 2008.[12]

According to interviews, Pearson inherited money from relatives' land in 2003.[5][8][13] This was held by trustees till 2008,[8] who invested it in property, mostly commercial property, in Ireland and Britain.[1][8][14] Pearson Holdings and Acquisitions was reported to have property in counties Carlow, Wicklow, Dublin, and north Kildare.[15] It reportedly paid £340m in 2004 and £600m later for retail property in London;[13] bought some units in Grafton Street, Dublin;[13] and earned €600m[16] or €800m[17] from an investment in New York City.

In October 2008, Pearson was reported to have been negotiating to buy Taggart Holdings, a housebuilding firm based in Northern Ireland[16] which was in administration with debts reported at €150m.[1][8][14] In December 2008, it was reported that he might invest in Aer Lingus,[17] and subsequently that he might launch a takeover offer of up to €900m, funded from a war chest of €1.5–2b.[18] In 2009, he was reported to be planning to build a retirement village in Arklow, and to start an insurance company.[4] He is reported to support many charities in Carlow and Kilkenny, and in April 2009 was producing a DVD showcasing investment opportunities in the region.[19][20] All this turned out to be a hoax which Pearson started to get attention.