David Drumm, the former head of Anglo Irish Bank, was arrested by U.S. Marshals at his Wellesley home in late 2015 in answer to an extradition request of Irish authorities who wanted him to face more than two dozen criminal charges overseas related to that bank’s messy demise. On Tuesday Drumm was freed in Ireland after posting bail of 150,000 euros (about $167,000) at a district court in Dublin, as reported by Lorelei Stevens of the Cape Cod Times.

Drumm lived in Wellesley for 6 years, much to the chagrin of Irish financial regulators who accused him of all sorts of shenanigans that allegedly went down with Anglo Irish Bank, eventually leading the Irish government to prop it up during that country’s banking crisis earlier in the 2000s.

In December 2008, as Drumm resigned from the bank as it was failing, he relocated first to Chatham and then to Wellesley. He was arrested by U.S. Marshals at his Wellesley home on Oct. 10, 2015 on an extradition request from the Irish government

According to the Cape Cod Times report:

“Under the terms of his bail, Drumm has surrendered his passport. He must stay at a home in Skerries, a seaside town north of Dublin. He also must check in with police at the Garda station in an adjacent town twice daily and be available by cellphone at all times…Drumm is facing 33 charges related to fraud and other illegal practices that led to the near collapse of the bank, which contributed heavily to the economic crisis in Ireland at the time. Each offenses carries a five- or 10-year jail term, except for a one count of conspiracy to defraud, which has a maximum penalty of an “unlimited term of imprisonment” under Irish law. In court, an investigator quoted by the Irish Independent newspaper noted that the case against Drumm involves more than 400 phone calls and millions of pages of evidence. The spokesman for the court said the case “is not expected to go to trial until the middle of next year.” Drumm has yet to enter a plea in court.”

Meanwhile, Drumm’s attorney told the court that Drumm’s wife intends to sell the couple’s Wellesley home and return to Ireland. That Cliff Estates home was a sticking point with the Irish press, which questioned his claims of financial hardship even as he was spending oodles to gussy up the four bedroom, 3.5 bath, 4,000+ square foot home. The current estimated sale price would be just over $2 million. The home last sold in January 2010 for $2,042,891.

The story has been grabbing big headlines overseas, including in The Irish Times, which includes a timeline recounting Drumm’s story. We imagine it’s a relief to Drumm to be out of prison just in time for him to raise a glass to St. Patrick, who is widely credited with driving the snakes out of Ireland.

Also of interest…

How Wellesley wound up in the middle of the Anglo Irish bank mess

From Ireland to Cliff Estates to Wellesley police station cell and back to Ireland?