Disgraced Burke to be released from prison

DISGRACED former minister Ray Burke will get his first taste of freedom in almost five months tomorrow when he is due to be released from prison.

The tax-dodging, retired politician otherwise known as Prisoner No 33791 is expected to emerge from Arbour Hill Prison sometime tomorrow morning.

However, Burke's release will be cushioned by the fact that his combined ministerial and TD pension, worth an annual €90,000, will have earned him around €35,000 during his stay in prison.

His resources will also be boosted by almost €300 as a result of the €2.25 daily allowance he amassed during his jail term.

Last January, Burke, aged 61, from Griffith Downs, Drumcondra, was sentenced to six months' imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to a number of tax-related offences. However, the former Fianna Fáil high-flyer was entitled to the standard 25% remission rate for good behaviour.

Prison sources described Burke as "a model prisoner".

During his stay, Burke also received frequent visits from his wife, Ann, and other members of his family.

Burke was transferred on his first day in jail from Mountjoy to Arbour Hill, which normally houses the country's most notorious sex offenders, for safety reasons.

Among the prisoners who shared the same landing as the former Dublin North TD were John Shaw, who has spent almost 30 years in prison following his conviction of the 1976 murders of two office workers in Dublin and Mayo.

The one-time Fianna Fáil heavyweight, nicknamed Rambo for his bruising political style, has the unenviable reputation of being the first minister in the history of the State to be convicted of an offence linked to the investigation of a tribunal.

In January, he was sentenced for his deliberate failure to declare interest totalling over £116,000 which he earned on money in a number of bank accounts in Ireland and abroad when filing his income tax returns in 1993.

The prosecution resulted from a major investigation of Burke's financial affairs by the Criminal Assets Bureau. It had been prompted by the landmark finding of the Planning Tribunal's report that he had received a series of corrupt payments in the late 1980s from property developers and other rich businessmen.

Burke was forced to sell his former home in Swords for €4 million in 2000 in order to meet a €1.3m settlement with the CAB. However, his financial difficulties remain far from over as he still has an outstanding €10.5m legal bill, which the tribunal refused to pay, from his long-running involvement with the inquiry.

Tribunal chairman Judge Alan Mahon may also seek to impose additional costs of the multi-million-euro inquiry on Burke because his obstructions and failure to co-operate with the tribunal caused unnecessary delays.

The former TD may also face a separate criminal prosecution for such behaviour.