A Garda sergeant in Sligo put in a claim for bus expenses for a witness whom he had taken to Letterkenny, Co Donegal, by patrol car, he told the tribunal.
Insp Gerard Connolly, who was a sergeant at the time, said he took Bernard Conlon to Letterkenny for an informal identity parade, and put in a claim for £12.50 knowing he had taken him in the patrol car.
Senior counsel Anthony Barr, for the tribunal, said there was no question of a forged document. Sgt Connolly had been formally disciplined for it. He asked if it was to keep Mr Conlon "sweet".
Insp Connolly said it probably was to keep him "right".
Mr Conlon has alleged Det Sgt John White, Letterkenny, told him to get caught drinking after hours in the Raphoe nightclub owned by the McBreartys and be a State witness to set them up.
He also alleged Sgt White told him to make false statements about being threatened with a silver bullet by two of the extended McBrearty family, Mark McConnell and Michael Peoples.
Insp Connolly said he had been called to Mr Conlon's house in June 1998. Mr Conlon told him two men had threatened him with the bullet if he continued with the court case.
"He was short of breath, he was excited. He genuinely looked like a person totally traumatised and I completely believed him at that time," he said. Insp Connolly said he arranged with Sgt White to organise an informal identity parade in Letterkenny and in October 1998 Mr Conlon identified Mr McConnell in the street.
Earlier, James Sheridan, Sligo, a retired chief superintendent, was asked about forged claims for court expenses for Mr Conlon.Retired garda John Nicholson had told the tribunal that as Mr Conlon refused to get a certificate of earnings, he asked another garda, now dead, to provide one.
Mr Sheridan was asked yesterday if he thought Mr Nicholson had gone to a specialist operator in the station, or if he could have gone to anyone in Sligo station who would have forged it. There were seven forged certificates altogether. Mr Sheridan replied: "It was not such a place."