Garda Ombudsman report finds 'no evidence' of internal leak

The Garda Ombudsman Commission has published a document which says there is no evidence that any of its employees leaked a confidential internal report.

The Garda Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) has published a document which says there is no evidence that any of its employees leaked a confidential internal report.

GSOC hired an outside barrister to investigate whether any of its employees leaked information to the Sunday Times, which reported that the Commission's offices in Dublin could had been bugged.

Earlier this month GSOC said that inquiry had been inconclusive - and that it couldn't publish its investigation, because it contained so much personal data.

However it has now produced excerpts from that report, compiled by senior counsel Mark Connaughton.

He says he is satisfied that journalist John Mooney did not have access to GSOC's confidential internal report on the affair - as if he did, some of the claims in his report would not have been published.

He says he believes the source who gave the story to Mr Mooney did not fully understand the security concerns and gave him an exaggerated account of affairs.

He says some of the information probably came from the contractors who carried out the security sweep,but that there is no evidence that anyone within GSOC, who was aware of the security concern, was involved in leaking the confidential report.