The former head of the police force in Northern Ireland was accused of claiming a man beaten to death by loyalists may have been accidentally killed by his own family, an inquiry heard today.
It was also suggested that Sir Ronnie Flanagan claimed Robert Hamill's sister Diane had an agenda to "discredit" the force.
Sir Ronnie said the record from an unnamed government official presented to the Hamill inquiry was completely inaccurate and disgraceful.
Mr Hamill (25) was attacked in Portadown in April 1997 and died 11 days later. The inquiry is investigating if there was police malpractice in the killing.
The minute from an unnamed government official said: "I generally found the chief constable in a pretty defensive and critical mood.
"In particular, he commented that Hamill's death could have been caused by his own family cradling his head in a way that led to oxygen starvation."
The allegation linking the victim's family to his death was part of a minute of a conversation of July 24, 2000 but the official, who was carrying out a review, cannot be named.
Sir Ronnie said: "To suggest that Robert's death was due to anything other than the beating he received at the hands of his assailants is absolutely disgraceful."
He denied saying that Diane Hamill had an agenda to discredit the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC).
"I think she has an agenda to find out exactly what happened to her brother," he added.
Sir Ronnie admitted at the Belfast inquiry that relations between nationalists and police needed to improve and said it was one of his priorities on taking up office.
Before Mr Hamill's death, the controversial Drumcree Orange Order parade had been allowed down the nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown.
Sir Ronnie, who now lives in the Middle East, was chief constable of the RUC and the Police Service of Northern Ireland between 1996 and 2002.
Reserve Constable Robert Atkinson later faced conspiracy charges linked to the death of Mr Hamill after he was accused of tipping off one of the murder suspects.
Leading Counsel for the Hamill family, Barra McGrory QC, accused Sir Ronnie of failing to step in and suspend RC Atkinson.
"There's an appalling lack of supervision. The disinterest of the senior ranks within the RUC in the investigation into Reserve Constable Atkinson led directly or indirectly to the failure to detect him," he added.
Conspiracy charges were pressed but the case never went to trial.
Sir Ronnie responded: "I completely and utterly refute that. I know absolutely not one of them would tolerate such an individual if they had engaged in such behaviour, being part of the organisation, and would do all in their power to make sure such an individual was pursued."
But Mr McGrory maintained that more could have been done in September 1997, when suspicions of a link between RC Atkinson and one of the suspects first emerged, to pursue the lead.
"Reserve Constable Atkinson was given the opportunity to give an alibi when he could have been confronted with the evidence of the phone calls and perhaps forced into giving an even shakier alibi or stumbled into any sort of an answer that could have given up investigative opportunities," he added.
"That was the time that he should have been confronted."
In the end RC Atkinson used two alibis, including his wife, for calls from his house to the murder suspect after the crime.
Mr McGrory said: "The overall situation Sir Ronnie is one of a catalogue of failures."
Sir Ronnie defended his failure to seek the suspension of Atkinson, insisting that Chief Superintendent Maynard McBurney was in day-to-day charge of the investigation.
"This person (Atkinson) went sick and was not on the street for a very prolonged period. I wanted to know should he be attempting to return to duty."
He added that there were specific circumstances to the investigation to which he was not privy and defended Mr McBurney, now deceased, as a fine policeman.
The inquiry continues.
PA