Inquiry granted developer immunity
The tribunal also believed the Sligo-born developer’s claim that he was asked for £5m one day after a meeting with Charles Haughey’s cabinet.
Gilmartin’s evidence unearthed claims of payments to Bertie Ahern, the then finance minister, as well as demands for cash from then Fianna Fáil TD Liam Lawlor.
Mr Lawlor demanded payments of £100,000 for himself and then assistant city and county manager George Redmond in May 1988.
It also agreed that Mr Lawlor had sought a 20% stake in a development of Mr Gilmartin’s on two separate occasions and that this was corrupt.
Mr Gilmartin had made attempts in the late 1980s to develop 180 acres of lands in west Dublin, known as Quarryvale. He was subsequently joined in the venture, after falling short of funds, by Cork developer Owen O’Callaghan. The lands and retail areas eventually became known as Liffey Valley Shopping Centre.
He had also sought at the time to develop a city centre location at Bachelors Walk.
In later years, Mr Gilmartin became a chief witness for the inquiry and was also granted immunity from prosecution by the DPP.
The inquiry looked at corrupt practices used by public officials and the rezoning of the lands at Quarryvale.
It found Mr Gilmartin emerged from a meeting with taoiseach Charles Haughey and his ministers in Leinster House in early 1989 and was confronted by a man who corruptly demanded £5m from him to be put into an offshore account. This was the famous demand that made “the mafia look like monks”, the inquiry had heard.
It found then minister Pádraig Flynn had asked Mr Gilmartin to donate to Fianna Fáil to remove obstacles to Quarryvale.
However, the money never went to the party and was instead used by Mr Flynn to buy a farm at Cloonanass in Mayo in the name of the minister’s wife.
The tribunal accepted that Mr Gilmartin informed senior Fianna Fáil members about the £50,000 payment to Mr Flynn, including to Mr Ahern and Sean Sherwin, the party’s national organiser.
Mr Sherwin then informed taoiseach Albert Reynolds of the payment, it found, at Mr Reynolds’s home in Feb 1992. The matter was never raised with Mr Flynn by senior Fianna Fáil figures identified before the tribunal began.
The tribunal also accepted Mr Gilmartin’s claim that Mr O’Callaghan told him he paid sums of £30,000 and £50,000 to Mr Ahern.
Mr O’Callaghan also told him in a taxi ride to the airport that he had Cllr Colm McGrath “on his payroll”, while waving a cheque of either £10,000 or £20,000, it was found.
It found then Fianna Fáil Cllr Finbarr Hanrahan had “corruptly sought” a payment of £100,000 from him in Buswells Hotel in early 1989 to support Quarryvale.
Mr Gilmartin also received a phonecall from a man purporting to be “Garda Burns”, the purpose of which was to discourage him from co-operating with a Garda inquiry on corrupt payments.
But ultimately, complaints made to gardaí by Mr Gilmartin about Mr Lawlor and others were “not thoroughly investigated by the gardaí”, it found.
During the hearings, Mr Gilmartin’s attitude towards Mr O’Callaghan was “one of intense dislike and deep contempt, clouded by a rarely concealed bitterness”. He blamed the Cork developer for frustrating his efforts at Quarryvale.
* It was Mr Gilmartin’s claims that Bertie Ahern had received money from Cork developer Owen O’Callaghan that resulted in the then taoiseach appearing before the tribunal.
* The developer said the late Liam Lawlor asked him for £100,000 for him and a 20% stake in his business, as well as the same sum for assistant city and county manager George Redmond.
* He claimed that Mr O’Callaghan told him he made payments totalling £80,000 to Mr Ahern.
* The tribunal accepted that minister Padraig Flynn received £50,000 from Mr Gilmartin to “remove obstacles” for a development. The funds were used to buy a Mayo farm for Mr Flynn’s wife.
READ THE FINAL MAHON REPORT HERE
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