A former-FBI agent who infiltrated the leadership of the so-called "Real IRA" communicated with both the FBI and MI5 by e-mail, a Dublin court was told today.
Mr David Rupert will be the central prosecution witness against Mr Michael McKevitt, who is charged with directing the activities of the Real IRA, the Special Criminal Court was told.
Prosecuting, Mr George Birmingham SC said Mr Rupert successfully infiltrated the Real IRA leadership. "Mr Rupert maintained contact with the FBI and the British Security Service by way of e-mails. That has generated a vast number of e-mails."
The e-mails had to be edited before they could be made available to Mr McKevitt's defence because they included some material that would put peoples' lives at risk, he said.
The defence had already been furnished with Mr Rupert's proposed statement that would appear in the book of evidence, he said.
In due course the e-mails would be made available to the defence but they would not be part of the book of evidence, he said.
He said the state would be opposing bail for Mr McKevitt because it believed that if granted bail he would continue to direct the activities of an illegal organisation.
Mr McKevitt's barrister Mr Stephen McCann said the defence has been notified that the police file on the case has not yet been submitted to the Chief State Solicitor's office.
Mr Birmingham said it was expected the file would be submitted this week. The court remanded Mr McKevitt in custody until June 13th when a date will be fixed for a bail application.
Mr McKevitt (51), of Beech Park, Blackrock, Dundalk in Co Louth is charged with being a member of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army between August 29th 1999 and March 28th 2001.
In addition he is charged with directing the activities of the same organisation between August 29th 1999 and October 23rd 2000.
Mr McKevitt is the first person to be charged with directing an unlawful organisation under Section 6 of the Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act 1998, brought in just two weeks after the Omagh bombing of August 1998 which killed 29 people and injured more than 200.
Under the Act anyone convicted of directing an unlawful organisation is liable to life imprisonment.
PA