Man 'lived through nightmare', court told

A Dublin businessman lived through a “nightmare” over the past few months because of intimidation and threats made before and during the trial of two men accused of membership of an illegal organisation, the Special Criminal Court heard today.

Mr Patrick Byrne, director of security firm Protocol Contract Services, told the court he was warned not to mention the IRA in his evidence during the trial of Dublin men Mr Martin Kelly and Mr William Clare.

Both men were on trial for membership of an illegal organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, when Mr Clare (aged 35) suddenly changed his plea yesterday to guilty. He has been remanded in custody at Portlaoise prison for sentencing until after the trial of Mr Martin Kelly. Mr Kelly (aged 47), a former Irish soldier, denies membership of an illegal organisation.

“I just want to say that Billy Clare threatened me, Martin Kelly rang me. He didn’t threaten me, but I felt threatened. The whole thing over the last few months has been a nightmare” he said this afternoon.

He told Mr Peter Finlay SC, defending, that Mr Kelly never threatened him but he “just felt threatened because I was getting all these other calls from Billy Clare” he said. “They weren’t nice” he added through tears.

Mr Byrne admitted today that while he was still unhappy with a Garda interview and statement made at Dublin airport last year, he was now satisfied “a lot of it was true”. On Tuesday Mr Byrne denied mentioning the IRA in his Garda statement.

However, under cross-examination he broke down and admitted he had been intimidated and threatened “continuously” by Mr Clare over the past year. He was subsequently hospitalised after giving evidence on Tuesday night and was only fit to return to the witness box today.

He told the court the IRA was first mentioned to him at a meeting with Mr Clare and Mr Kelly in Temple Bar last year. “It’s been a very very tough time for me… Billy Clare mentioned the IRA to me” he told prosecuting counsel Mr George Birmingham SC.

“When was the first time you realised Billy Clare had anything to do with the IRA?” Mr Birmingham asked.

“I wasn’t 100% sure but it was early on after the meeting when I realised for the first time. He had mentioned it on a couple of occasions. I don’t know when it was but I was told that Clare was the ‘top man’…Martin said it” replied Mr Byrne. When asked by defence counsel Mr Finlay what Mr Kelly meant by saying Mr Clare was the ‘top man’, he said “he obviously meant the IRA but he never actually said it”.

He told the court that he was told by Mr Clare that large payments were to be “passed on up north for wives and children of families that were after being in prison”. He told how a payment from a Dublin businessman of €25,000 was agreed to be paid in installments and that “after there was five installments I passed it to Billy Clare”.

Businessman Mr David Mooney told the court last week that Mr Clare demanded €50,000 for the Continuity IRA to allow his lap-dancing club to open in Temple Bar. Mr Mooney said that he handed over a total of €15,000 to Clare and Kelly before leaving the lap dancing club, ``Bunnies'', and entering the Witness Protection Programme.

When asked what he thought the payment of €25,000 was for, Mr Byrne said that initially he understood the money was security payments for the next year, “but that changed” after the meeting in Temple Bar. “It was then that I knew the IRA or whoever were involved” said Mr Byrne.

Mr Byrne told of another occasion when a man was introduced to him as “the top man in Limerick” at Mr Clare’s house. “Seemingly he was looking after some doors down there, the people were looking for a legitimate company with insurance and he wanted us to front the doors for him” said Mr Byrne. “Yours was a legitimate company?” asked Mr Birmingham. “That’s right” replied Mr Byrne.

When questioned by defence counsel Mr Finlay, Mr Byrne said he had never heard Mr Kelly suggest he was connected with the IRA. “No, he told me he was in the Irish army” he said.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Joseph Finnegan at the Special Criminal Court tomorrow(FRI).