Land deal probe to take ‘some time’

NEARLY three months after a major probe was launched into a controversial land deal in North Cork, gardaí have yet to be formally asked to investigate it.

The investigation was sparked by a complaint from Pushkin Developments, which alleged that two bankers, who had purchased a 20-acre site from them in Deerpark, Charleville, were in negotiations to sell the land to the county council even before they bought it.

Senior officials in Cork County Council are understood to have made initial approaches to gardaí, to alert to them to the possible need for a criminal investigation, but to date they have not lodged a formal complaint.

It is understood that the county council’s internal inquiry is ongoing, and that one of its senior officials will remain suspended pending its outcome.

It is believed that the man in question, who worked in the local authority for several years, has claimed that he did absolutely nothing wrong and followed the council’s procedures to the full.

The county council has put a dedicated team onto the case. They have already interviewed a number of people and are still trawling through files of correspondence.

The council will neither confirm nor deny that one of its senior officials is suspended. The refusal to comment, it says, is on foot of legal advice.

The council is also refusing to make any further comments, except to say that the investigation is ongoing, and, because it is very thorough, will take some time to complete.

It is believed that hundreds of man hours have already been put into the probe by officials and it may be some weeks before the outcome of the internal investigation is known.

A number of staff and auctioneers have been interviewed so far.

John Daly of Pushkin Developments outlined his complaint in a letter to the county manager, Maurice Moloney.

He alleged that Pushkin Developments sold the land for €8 million, before it found out it was being sold on again.

The county council had, in the interim, agreed to pay the two bankers, Permanent TSB branch manager in Cork, Denis O’Reilly, and area-branch manager Brian Cremin, €11.6m.

The local authority paid a deposit to the two bankers, but refused to pay the balance when it received the complaint from Pushkin Developments.

The bankers are taking the council to the High Court seeking the outstanding money.

Allegations have also been made that the county council could have purchased the zoned land three years ago for as little as €4m.