Recordings of witness in murder investigation sent to DPP in 2001

Recordings of conversations between a witness in the

Sophie Toscan

du Plantier murder investigation

and gardaí were included in a file on the killing sent to the DPP in 2001.

Witness Martin Graham alleged that gardaí offered him drugs to spy on Ian Bailey. Mr Graham contacted gardaí in February 1997 and made a number of statements relating to conversations he had with Mr Bailey upon his (Mr Bailey's) release by gardaí following his first arrest on February 10th, 1997, for questioning about the killing.

Gardaí believed Mr Graham might be able to befriend Mr Bailey and obtain further information. Two officers met him on a number of occasions between February and April 1997.

Admissions
Mr Graham subsequently alleged gardaí had offered him money and cannabis to get Mr Bailey to make certain admissions, and he later contacted the Sunday World newspaper to sell a story about his recruitment as a spy by gardaí.

It is understood some of Mr Graham’s early phone calls with Bandon Garda station may be among the recordings uncovered recently, but recordings of conversations with Mr Graham and gardaí regarding the drug allegations were already part of a file sent to the DPP in 2001.

Gardaí had become suspicious about Mr Graham soon after he contacted them, and began secretly taping their conversations with him.

Robert Sheehan of the DPP's office, in his review of the Garda file on the case, said he believed "on the balance of evidence" Mr Graham was telling the truth when he said he was given cannabis by the gardaí despite Garda denials.

'Unsafe'
"Such investigative practices are clearly unsafe to say the least," said Mr Sheehan as part of his analysis of the evidence which led him to conclude that "a prosecution of Mr Bailey is not warranted by the evidence".

However, Mr Graham was subsequently interviewed as part of a review of the Garda investigation ordered by the then Garda commissioner, Noel Conroy, in 2005 after Mr Bailey's solicitor, Frank Buttimer, expressed concern over the original investigation.

Last month, Mr Graham reiterated his claims in an interview with the Irish Sunday Mirror when he said gardaí had given him cannabis in 1997 to befriend and obtain information from Mr Bailey who confirmed in his 2003 libel action that he smoked cannabis.