O'Brien denies link to financial transactions

Denis O'Brien's other allegation regarding the evidence heard this week concerned file notes created by executives of Investec Bank.

The bank, formerly known as GE Capital Woodchester, loaned money to Mr O'Brien's accountant, Aidan Phelan, which Mr Phelan, according to an internal bank memo, told the bank was for a "Denis O'Brien transaction".

Another file note of a conversation from earlier this year records former bank executive Michael Tunney telling the bank that Mr O'Brien was behind the transaction.

The money, £420,000 (€533,700), was for a property deal in Cheadle in the UK, involving a company called Catclause, the directors of which are Michael Lowry and his daughter.

Mr O'Brien has said he had nothing to do with the loan, did not know anything about it at the time it was being issued, and that he was furious when he heard his name was being mentioned in connection with it.

When John Coughlan SC, for the tribunal, asked if Mr O'Brien was suggesting that the file notes did not reflect attempts to accurately record what was said, Mr O'Brien replied: "Do you want a realistic view?" Mr Coughlan said "Yes". "Banks sometimes put file notes into files that suit their position," Mr O'Brien said.

"Having read this and some other things, I will take the view that the bank had a difficulty with a loan, and they were trying to obviously get the file right."

Later Mr O'Brien seemed to draw back from this. "I am not making any sort of allegations in relation to the documents," he said. When he was asked if he was suggesting the memos were just to get the files right, he said: "I don't know."

Overall, Mr O'Brien said he could not see how there was any link between him and the various transactions being investigated by the tribunal.

In relation to Mr Austin passing on to Mr Lowry the £150,000 he was given by Mr O'Brien for a house in Spain, he had no knowledge of that. It was not his responsibility, he said.

Likewise, if £300,000 he paid in fees from his bank to Mr Phelan went straight into a property transaction, in Mansfield, that Mr Lowry was involved in that again was not his responsibility.

He said it was not the case that £295,250 sent to a New York stockbroking firm, Credit Suisse DLJ, to buy Esat Telecom shares, was meant for Mr Austin.

The shares were lodged to Mr Austin's account but removed on November 16th, 1998, 16 days after Mr Austin died.

They were moved to the account of Mr O'Brien's father in law, Noel Walshe. Mr O'Brien said they had been lodged to the wrong account. Peter Muldowney, the stockbroker who handled the account, has said he will not give evidence.

Mr Muldowney is the second professional witness who has refused to give evidence concerning the transactions currently being investigated. Christopher Vaughan, the English solicitor who acted in the Cheadle and Mansfield transactions, has also refused to give evidence.

Mr O'Brien said he would welcome any inquiry by the tribunal into the awarding of the second mobile phone licence to Esat Digifone. "We won the licence fair and square," he said.