Chawke: £2,500 to Bertie was ‘just a few quid for a friend’

PUBLICAN Charlie Chawke told the Mahon Tribunal yesterday he had no difficulty giving IR£2,500 in cash — his share of a £22,500 whip- round among friends in late 1993 — to help Bertie Ahern with his marital separation legal fees.

“It was just a few quid for a friend and I wasn’t looking for a receipt,” Mr Chawke told tribunal lawyer Henry Murphy SC. “I gave the money as a goodwill gesture and when I had given it I never thought about it any more.”

Former Fianna Fáil fundraiser Des Richardson and Mr Ahern’s solicitor, the late Gerry Brennan — both of whom were Mr Chawke’s friends — asked if he would contribute to defray Mr Ahern’s legal bills.