Stations were fitted out with recording system 6 years ago

Garda chiefs shelled out more than half-a-million euro for a state-of-the-art digital recording system to be placed in 21 stations around the country six years ago.

Official records reveal a company called Sigma Wireless Ltd, of Finglas, north Dublin, was awarded the lucrative contract to install the technology.

The 24-hours, seven-days-a-week system includes recording, playback and archive capabilities — all linked to a central archive at Garda headquarters.

It was to be connected into existing telephone networks at the force HQ in Phoenix Park as well as its Dublin HQ in Harcourt Street — home to elite units, including the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Criminal Assets Bureau and the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation.

Other stations fitted out with the recording and archive technology include Anglesea Street in Cork, Drogheda, Castlebar, Bandon, Ennis, Fermoy, Henry Street in Limerick, Letterkenny, Mill Street in Galway and Monaghan.

Stations at Mullingar, Naas, Portaloise, Roscommon, Sligo, Thurles, Tralee, Waterford and Wexford were also connected to the system, according to tender documents.

The force insisted the technology would have to be compatible with both analogue and digital systems at the named stations.

In an official tender notice, it was stated: “The proposed solution shall automatically record and instantly play back telephone calls and radio traffic from An Garda Síochána’s communications systems at the sites outlined.”

It added: “The proposed system shall be designed for fault tolerant and high availability environment (24 x 7, continuous duty operation).”

It was further demanded that recordings gathered by the system can be immediately played back at designated management and playback workstations.

Garda bosses ordered the recording system be linked up to a systems management base at Garda HQ, where the central archive system allows authorised officers to search, retrieve and play back archived calls.

Closing date for the tenders was December 2007.

There were at the time already 20 “Dictaphone Guardian” recording systems at all of the named Garda stations — except headquarters in the Phoenix Park — which suppliers were invited to take as part payment.

“Due to the fact that currently archived calls may be required at a future date, tenderers shall also include a proposal for the playback of archived recordings,” the notice stated.

Justice Minister Alan Shatter said the Dictaphone recorders used at Garda stations during the 1990s were replaced in 2008 by a system developed by Israeli-based company NICE.

Sigma’s website confirms they supply NICE recorders.

Official documents show Sigma Wireless Ltd was awarded the contract in April 2008 at a cost of €537,173.45 before VAT.

Sigma refused to comment on the contract.