Immigrant slipped €500 into pocket of visa official, court hears

A Chinese immigrant has claimed he put two envelopes with "gifts" of €500 into the coat pocket of a former Garda National Immigration Bureau employee without him noticing.

Mr Jirong Zhang who owns and runs a supermarket in the city said at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that the former official never asked him for the money and never discussed it with him afterwards.

Mr Jirong who was giving evidence at the trial of the former bureau employee charged with taking bribes in return for issuing fraudulent visas, also admitted following questioning by defence counsel, Mr John Rogers SC that he had been fined €68,000 last year for smuggling and selling contraband tobacco.

John Kennedy (aged 69), Willow Crest, Trees Avenue, Mount Merrion, County Dublin has pleaded not guilty to six counts of receiving bribes of €500 as well as a bottle of wine and a meal voucher between December 2002 and January 2003 in return for issuing fraudulent visas.

It was day-three of the trial during which another Chinese immigrant, Mr Li Yung Feng, denied Mr Rogers’ assertion that he made-up his bribery allegations so that he would be allowed to remain in the country.

Mr Li earlier gave evidence that he passed two payments of €500 each to Mr Kennedy to "thank him" for issuing visas to Chinese students with false documentation.

Speaking through an interpreter, Mr Li said he would receive €400 each from students in return for helping to obtain false attendance certificates from English language schools which Mr Kennedy would allegedly use to issue them a visa.

When Mr Rogers (with Mr Cormac Quinn BL), put it to him that he had "fabricated the story to get yourself out of trouble, didn’t you?", Mr Li responded: "How can I dare make up a story? I could end up in jail."

Mr Li had said that following his allegations to the gardai he was allowed to remain in Ireland by the authorities to act as a witness in the case and he was given a visa which would allow him to stay indefinitely.

He also denied Mr Rogers’ accusation that he could speak English "very well" and did not require an interpreter.

When Mr Rogers asked how he was able to send text messages to the accused in English asking him when he would be working, Mr Li replied that he sent them in "simple English."

Asked by Mr Rogers how he was able to read the letter summoning him to court as a witness, Mr Li answered: "I can’t understand it fully."

Mr Jirong told prosecuting counsel, Mr Thomas O’Connell SC, he also acted as an agent for Chinese students and helped from "ten to fifteen" people get a visa from Mr Kennedy.

He told Mr O’Connell (with Mr Remy Farrell BL) he twice met Mr Kennedy in 2002 in a coffee shop and put an envelope containing "gifts" of €500 into his coat pocket each time without him noticing.

Mr Jirong said Mr Kennedy had never asked for the money and had never discussed it with him after the payments were made.

When asked by Mr Rogers why he decided to give money instead of an object, Mr Jirong replied: "For Chinese custom I would give such a person a gift. I did not know what to buy him so I gave him money as a gesture."

Mr Rogers put it to Mr Jirong that it was "one of the most unlikely stories ever" that both he and Mr Li decided independently to give Mr Kennedy "gifts" of €500 for helping their friends get visas and said: "I suggest to you that you never gave one or two envelopes with €500 in them and that you’ve made up the entire story."

Mr Jirong replied: "I tell you all I said in my statement is true."

The trial continues before Judge Desmond Hogan with a jury of six men and six women.