To some he was the 'shoebox king', to others 'an enigma wrapped up in a puzzle', but in reality his spectacular downfall in the summer of 2009 heralded the demise of the Celtic Tiger and the seven years of austerity that followed the reckless developer/banker-led economic crash.
Liam Carroll, who has died at the age of 70, went from being a billionaire builder and property developer to being massively in debt within the space of a few short weeks that August, and the billions owed by the unassuming businessman contributed to the catastrophic economic disaster that engulfed the country.
He was also an unlikely tycoon. While other developers bought stately homes and travelled to glitzy social and sporting events by helicopter, Carroll lived in a suburban home in Mount Merrion, Dublin and followed League of Ireland football. He drove a battered old red Toyota and went to evening mass in the nearby St Therese's Church on a Sunday, followed by a single pint of Smithwicks in Kiely's pub which he consumed in splendid isolation.