Adams reaction: The Sinn Féin president, Mr Gerry Adams, has said that "serious reflection" would be required if evidence emerged to prove that the IRA was responsible for the Northern Bank raid.
As a major Garda investigation into money-laundering by republicans continued yesterday, Mr Adams said on RTÉ radio that he could say without question that "the Sinn Féin organisation" was not involved in any money-laundering activities.
Speaking from Bilbao, where he was on a book promotion tour, he said Sinn Féin was opposed to crime and he rejected the contention of the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, that the Provisional movement was "a colossal crime machine".
"That isn't true, and for a Minister of Justice to make those type of remarks, I think, is evidence of a party political agenda as opposed to anything else," Mr Adams said.
It was not the case that Sinn Féin and IRA were two sides of same coin and he said he had "seen or heard nothing at this time" to make him change his view that the IRA was not responsible for the Northern Bank raid.
Asked what would happen if evidence emerged that the IRA had, after all, carried out the raid, he said: "Such a serious situation as you are suggesting might emerge will take very serious reflection by me and others who are in the leadership of Sinn Féin." He said he was not going make knee-jerk reactions, but would face up to such issues if they emerged.
"I want to see a united Ireland. I don't want to be tainted with criminality. I don't want anybody near me who is involved in criminality," he said.
"I will face up to all of these issues if and when they emerge, but as I sit now in Bilbao at the end of a telephone in an interview with RTÉ I can only deal with the situation as I know it at this time."
Asked whether he would walk away from certain people if presented with evidence of connection between the IRA and the raid, he said: "We will weather the storm and I will not walk away from any challenge which presents itself in the time ahead."
He went on: "If Sinn Féin have issues to deal with we will deal with those issues. We live in the real world.
"We know how much people depend on us to make this peace process work and we will not fail the people, whatever that means in the time ahead."
Mr Adams said he was not in politics for the good of his health, ministerial office or for a fat salary.
"I know there are many other people in politics in all the parties who are motivated by a sense of trying to give public service.
"I think that I have still a role to play in terms of the peace process and in terms of the equality agenda and in terms of the changes which I believe are required."
He said he only became aware of the Garda investigation late on Thursday and he recognised that the situation was serious.
"Of course I'm concerned. I'm actually flying back to try and get a handle on all of this. I've asked for a report," he said.
"At the moment I would ask people to be measured and not too judgmental about all of this."
