Liam Lawlor

Odd to read that Liam Lawlor was killed in a car accident today. Odd because the accident was in Russia. I guess I had imagined that Liam Lawlor wouldn't have been free to leave the country. Although, I don't think he was actually ever convicted of anything, was he?

UPDATE 8:00am Sunday: Henry McDonald says Lawlor may have been with a 'young prostitute' when he died. Even in death, there's scandal.

UPDATE 8:00am Monday: The family and the Irish Examiner's "very reliable diplomatic sources in Moscow" dispute the claim that the young woman in the car was a prostitute:

sources told the Irish Examiner that the woman was a Ukrainian national, aged 25 or 26, who worked for a legal firm in Prague and had flown into Moscow with Mr Lawlor shortly before the crash. Mr Lawlor had extensive business interests in the Czech capital.

The woman, who is understood to speak perfect English, is said to have been working in the role of legal assistant and interpreter for Mr Lawlor.

Clawing back some dignity, however, the more serious allegation was that "Lawlor was suspected of recycling cash for criminals into property across western Dublin and latterly into eastern Europe" (from McDonald's article).