A cheque for £50,000, which was passed on to Mr Charles Haughey on behalf of a Saudi Arabian diplomat who bought a yearling from Abbeville Stud, ended up in Guinness & Mahon accounts, the tribunal was told.
Mr John Coughlan said Dr John O'Connell, former TD and minister for health, told the tribunal that in February 1985 he dined in London with Mr Fustok, a Saudi diplomat, who asked him to pass on a cheque for £50,000 which Mr Fustok said he owed Mr Haughey.
Dr O'Connell said he lodged the cheque to his own account in the Bank of Ireland, Dublin, on February 22nd, 1985, and wrote his own cheque for the same amount. Dr O'Connell phoned Mr Haughey, who told him to make the cheque out to cash. Dr O'Connell handed the cheque to him.
Mr Haughey said Mr Fustok was a very important person in the racing world, with stables in France and Florida. He was anxious to ask Mr Fustok to start a racing establishment in Ireland. However, Mr Fustok decided not to come to Ireland. He recalled selling Mr Fustok a yearling.
"I feel that his offering to purchase the yearling from us was by way of recompense for not acceding to my request," Mr Haughey said. "I think it may have been a sort of a gesture on his part."
Asked who conducted the business of Abbeyville Stud in 1985, Mr Haughey said it was his daughter, Eimear, mainly. Mr Coughlan asked if the stud farm kept its own records and bank accounts.
"I'm sure it did, yes," said Mr Haughey.
Mr Coughlan asked if he knew what happened to the cheque Dr O'Connell gave him. Mr Haughey said he did not. Mr Coughlan said the cheque ended up in an Amiens account. "Did it? I don't recall that," said Mr Haughey.
Mr Coughlan said Mr Haughey had told the tribunal that to the best of his knowledge he had never handed cash or cheques to Mr Traynor. Mr Haughey agreed.
Mr Coughlan said: "Do you accept that if Dr O'Connell handed you a cheque and it ended up in a Amiens account, you must have given it to Mr Traynor?"
Mr Haughey replied: "That would seem to be so but I can't recall the details."