Witness defends decision not to report Gilmartin's allegations

Mahon Tribunal: A retired bank manager and friend of Mr Tom Gilmartin has denied that he failed to discharge his duties by not telling the gardaí about Mr Gilmartin's allegations.

Mr Paul Sheeran said he would have been treated with "contempt and disdain" if he had relayed Mr Gilmartin's allegation of being subjected to a £5 million extortion demand outside a meeting in Leinster House with government ministers.

Former Fianna Fáil TD Mr Liam Lawlor, representing himself, said all the witness had to do was pick up the phone and tell the authorities that his friend was being subjected to the £5 million demand in 1989. Yet he had decided, like the brass monkeys, to "see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil".

Mr Sheeran replied that this terminology could be more appropriately applied to Mr Lawlor than himself. He asked Mr Lawlor to imagine the reaction if he had rung to say that a customer of his had been "touched" for £5 million outside the door of a meeting with seven Cabinet ministers. He would have been treated with "contempt and disdain".

Mr Gilmartin had contacted the gardaí himself, and an investigation took place, he pointed out. He would have had very little to add to this. He wasn't in a position to do anything and Garda detectives hadn't contacted him during their investigation.

Last week, Mr Sheeran told the tribunal that Mr Gilmartin had relayed all his main allegations practically as they happened in the late 1980s. Asked yesterday if he believed the events alleged by Mr Gilmartin actually happened, he replied: "Yes, 100 per cent."

Mr Lawlor said the witness had been told the most extraordinary allegations, which required urgent attention, yet he had evaded his responsibilities. "Your friend was being extorted for £5 million and you thought it wasn't worth reporting," he said.

Mr Sheeran accused Mr Lawlor of "flogging" the issue. If he had done what was suggested, he would equally have had to ring the Bank of Ireland in Lucan and tell the manager there about the allegations concerning Mr Lawlor. In that sense, he was "equally negligent".

Mr Sheeran said he may have given a misleading impression last week when he said that Mr Gilmartin had been "besieged" by councillors. In fact, the developer had been contacted by many councillors who had nothing to do with demands for money.

He said he was "terrified" he might implicate these people because he could no longer distinguish between the two categories. However, asked later to name the councillors Mr Gilmartin had told him were looking for money, the witness said he was sure about the names of Mr Lawlor, Cllr Finbarr Hanrahan and Cllr Colm McGrath.

Later, a training course director, Ms Patricia Carroll, told the tribunal she recalled Mr Bertie Ahern visiting her premises at tea-time on February 1st, 1989, the date for the claimed meeting between Mr Gilmartin and government ministers in Leinster House. She said Mr Ahern presented certificates to an industrial handling course at about 5 p.m. that day. Mr Clive Carroll concurred with his wife's evidence.