MORRIS TRIBUNAL: A senior Garda officer has been outlining the circumstances under which suspended Garda Supt (then inspector) Kevin Lennon was appointed to supervise the handling of alleged Garda informer Ms Adrienne McGlinchey in 1993.
Chief Supt Denis Fitzpatrick was appointed as Border superintendent in 1992. His primary duty was liaison with the RUC, he said.
After Ms McGlinchey was arrested and her flat searched on May 19th, 1993, Chief Supt Fitzpatrick expressed concerns about her to Chief Supt Seán Ginty, whose attitude was that she was of use in the past, and would be again.
On June 9th, 1993, he sent a memo to members of the detective branch. In it he said that because too many gardaí knew Ms McGlinchey's identity, because she had failed to take reasonable care of her own security, and because she was "unstable and may not be giving all the information to us", a re-think was needed. He recommended gardaí should "lay off" Ms McGlinchey for six months, as she and members of the force "could be exposed to danger or at least compromise".
Following a meeting with Chief Supt Ginty, it was then agreed that Det Noel McMahon would handle Ms McGlinchey, and Supt Kevin Lennon was appointed to supervise Det McMahon.
The tribunal is looking into claims that Ms McGlinchey, an alleged informer, together with Supt Kevin Lennon and Det Garda Noel McMahon, prepared explosives for use in bogus Garda arms finds. Both officers deny these claims, and Ms McGlinchey insists she was never an informer.