Morris Tribunal: A former garda has said he told an inspector that a witness who made a key statement in the Richie Barron investigation had lied to him in the past.
"I went to Insp [ John] McGinley the following morning and I told him that I had concerns about it. I knew the fellow and he had told lies to me before," Mr Philip Collins said.
Mr Collins said that the night the statement was taken, he thought it was true. But overnight, he "had a slight doubt".
"Did McGinley reply to your health warning about McBride?" tribunal barrister Mr Peter Charleton asked. "There was no real reply," Mr Collins said.
The witness, Mr Noel McBride, made a statement described as the "catalyst" leading to the arrests of the McBrearty family on November 29th, 1996. In 1997 Mr McBride withdrew his statement.
Solicitors for the GRA were later asked to ensure Mr Collins gave satisfactory answers to questions concerning an enigmatic letter he wrote in 1998 to his colleague, John O'Dowd, who was also stationed in Raphoe.
"The letter contains apologies and expressions of personal regret," Mr Justice Morris said. But Mr Collins said it was a "personal letter" written during "a very traumatic period." He said that a reference to wanting to "nail McBrearty" in the letter was "only garda talk".